


to give you my heart

by mcscouty



Series: you & me & we [2]
Category: Venom (Movie 2018)
Genre: Background Relationships, Canon typical body horror, Depression, Developing Relationship, Discussion of Boundaries, Discussion of Canon-Typical Cannibalism, Domestic, Grocery Shopping, Hand Jobs, Intimacy, Jealousy, Kissing, M/M, Male-Female Friendship, Masturbation, Movie Spoilers, Other, Pets, Pining, Resolved Romantic Tension, Resolved Sexual Tension, Slow Burn, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-18
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-08-25 09:38:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16658729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcscouty/pseuds/mcscouty
Summary: eddie and venom navigate cohabitation, take care of their cat, attempt to figure out dietary needs, and somehow don't realize they're in a relationship.The fondness that swamps over Eddie feels unexpected— but, at the same time completely normal. Venom’s eyes widen and he loses shape, sinks back into Eddie’s skin with an embarrassed rumble. He loves that about Venom— for a self-labelled apex predator he gets flustered at the smallest twinge of affection.Venom snakes out again, head peeking out from Eddie’s shoulder.“What’s wrong, big guy?”Venom squirms— flushed with contentment at the endearment— and blinks at him before disappearing back under his skin. Eddie pauses, fingers still splayed along his notes and moves a hand to his chest, presses against his sternum and Venom flutters— like he wants to come to the surface of Eddie’s skin and wind into the touch. He stays hidden.We will talk about it later.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> this fic... spun out of control. I honestly wasn't expecting it to be more than 5k but my brain decided on something different. so expect abt 10k more of this and A Lot of UST/URT
> 
> title taken from [BTSK](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XH8DY3mkrpY) by MS MR

The thing is, Eddie intends to tell Anne about his symbiote situation. He really does— but. Despite the progress he’s made, Venom still isn’t fully healed. Eating that guy in Mrs. Chen’s yesterday is the first time Venom’s managed to take the reins fully; but. Anne— _and Dan_ , he thinks to Venom’s mild annoyance, deserve to know.

But he doesn’t want to risk that empty, hollow feeling again— he doesn’t want to have to feel Venom forcibly ripped out of him, to not know if Venom’s being pulled from host to host, being torn into pieces, or exposed to sounds that could kill him. He’s not ready to risk that when Venom’s finally strong enough to manifest, to talk to him with an actual voice or curl a large, clawed hand over his when they’re watching television together.

He just.

Eddie doesn’t want to lose his partner.

So, naturally, when Anne calls him while he and Venom are having an argument over the food budget _again_ — Eddie makes a mistake.

“I wanted to tell you in person earlier but I really didn’t get a chance,” Anne sounds nervous, hesitant almost. Eddie blinks at his phone a little worried and a lot distracted by Venom angrily rattling through the kitchen— opening the fridge and the cabinets and hissing, half out loud, half in Eddie’s head, to _look at all the food we have, look at the abundance, Eddie_.

“Can you. Hold on Annie,” he mutes his phone and grabs Venom’s tendril that’s protruding from his shoulder and gives it a hard _yank_. Venom makes a small keening sound that sounds like a yelp but Venom _insists_ it isn’t, _I’m not a dog, Eddie_. “Be _quiet_ ,” Eddie snaps. “We’ll go shopping later can you just— you need to wait for _ten minutes_. I can’t hang up on Anne.”

Venom grumbles, curls a tendril around Eddie’s knuckles in what could be mistaken for a soothing manner if Eddie couldn’t _hear_ Venom’s thoughts. The patronizing little— “Venom. Unless you want to tell her—”

“Fine,” Venom can’t roll his eyes but it _feels_ like he rolls his eyes before he shuts the cabinets and fridge— surprising progress, actually— and retreats back under Eddie’s skin. Eddie can feel him shifting temperamentally beneath his shoulders.

“You’re worse than the cat.”

_The cat doesn’t have complex thought, Eddie— I cannot be “worse than the cat.”_

Eddie breathes in. “Venom. I’m going to strangle you the second I’m done talking to Anne.”

 _Do it— you cannot harm me without harming yourself, Eddie_.

Eddie breathes out, slowly. “ _Venom_.”

He can feel the way Venom grins— self-satisfied and beyond amused with himself, a little fond too. Eddie scowls. “ _Behave_. We can go get something nice— no.” Venom’s already visualizing where they can go to corral the most criminals. “I meant like. Sushi.”

Venom hums, considering, before settling. _That’s acceptable_.

Eddie breathes a sigh of relief. “Okay, now.” He looks at his phone. “How long did I have her muted.”

 _I lost track of the time_ , Venom rumbles nonchalantly. Eddie can feel the laugh in his voice, can practically taste the unapologetic amusement. It’s a good feeling— and Eddie can’t stop the smile that twitches at the corner of his mouth, but god he’s going to need a good excuse for muting Anne to stop Venom from pouting.

_I was not—_

“Don’t _start_ with me right now—”

“Um.”

 _Shit_. He thinks a very loud, accusatory, _You did this didn’t you_ , and gets only a toothy grin pressed to his neck. He twitches. “Sorry— Not. Not you, Anne.”

“I would hope so,” luckily Anne sounds amused. “Mind telling me who you’re being so… Waspish with?”

It’d be so easy to hang up— call it done, let future Eddie deal with this; but, Eddie’s always been a glutton for punishment. Venom snorts.

“Uh— So. Don’t think I’ve heard you say ‘waspish’ before Did Dan get you a word of the day calendar—”

Anne laughs. It’s a nice sound— “Nice try, Eddie,”— and he does miss her, a lot. Maybe not in that same fierce yearning way he used to when he was still half in love with her. Venom curls a tendril down his arm, stops at his wrist to feel the pulse there. Eddie feels his breath catch— and really, really hopes Anne didn’t hear that—

“Eddie are you okay?”

Eddie jerks and Venom laughs against the nape of his neck. Eddie can feel the shudder that goes down his spine. They’re going to have to have a conversation about phone etiquette between now and the next time Anne calls.

“Uh. Yea— Sorry. You said you wanted to talk about something?”

He can hear the cogs turning in Anne’s mind on the other end of the phone and that’s the last thing he needs right now— _Behave_ , he snaps quickly, pulling his hand away from where it’s resting on Venom’s tentacle. God his life is fucked— he should have hung up when he had the chance.

He could still hang up now.

 _That’s rude, Eddie_ , Venom’s voice sounds closer— like the words are curling directly over his ear— and Eddie can’t help the strangled noise he ends up making.

“Eddie.”

“Yeeeeees?”

“Are you—” he can practically hear her eyes narrowing, “do you have someone _with you_?”

He does— god. He shudders a little when Venom pulls back— a little panicked, already thinking _no one can know_ and _it’s not safe_ and _Eddie—_ and Eddie settles back into reality. _I won’t tell her_ , he thinks quickly but Venom’s still panicking. He’s thinking about MRIs; the chill of the bay as he drifted, alone— _I won’t tell her_ , Eddie promises again, insistent.

“Eddie?”

He rubs the back of his neck, really glad that Anne can’t _see_ him. “I. Uh. Yeah. I do. It was kind of an impulse decision.”

Anne stays quiet for a moment and Eddie thinks, wildly, she _can’t_ be jealous. He’d choose Dan over himself any day of the week— Venom snaps out of his panic to hiss at Eddie and Eddie’s really not sure _why_ actually. His thoughts are racing— a lot like that time he sat down in that lobster tank and embarrassed himself— and he feels really sweaty. He starts tugging his sweatshirt off.

And Anne breathes in, and _laughs_. It’s a soft, relieved sound that Eddie probably wouldn’t have caught if he and Anne hadn’t been. Well. Everything to each other at one point— and Venom makes another low noise.

“I’m so happy to hear that,” and he thinks if this were a few months earlier the sheer relief in her voice would have broken his heart. It feels cathartic now— like something’s unwound under his breast bone. “So where’d you find them—”

“ _Anne._ ” Venom stirs— recognizing Eddie’s now patented voice of exasperation, the tone he uses every time Venom does or says something and should know better. “You know I don’t kiss and—”

“Bullshit you’ve always kissed and told, Brock.”

Eddie huffs. What can he say to that?

“Well— you can spare me the gruesome details—” (“Gruesome, _really_ , Annie?”) “I’m glad.”

And he _likes_ this. He’d known how much he missed Anne, but he thinks he hasn’t realized until now— to hear her teasing him and laughing so freely— that he realized the extent. He loves her; god, he still loves her. But he knows they can be happy like this— he can be happy like this.

“I mean. That was part of why I was calling.”

“Oh?”

Venom stirs, Eddie reaches up, puts his hand on his chest and strokes his thumb slowly over his heartbeat and Venom manifests to lean into the touch. There’s a thread of possessiveness— and, Eddie thinks that’s another thing they’re going to have to talk about. Anne’s off limits— she’s made it clear, she and Eddie are going to be friends. But, he thinks that almost feels wrong, like the slow radiating possessiveness from Venom _isn’t_ about Anne.

Anne sighs like she’s been considering the right words. She sounds a little cautious when she says, “I wanted to make sure you didn’t think I was leading you on,” Eddie can tell less cautiously than she would have originally broached this.

God, does he really seem _that_ desperate—

He thinks of that month without Venom, of his track record with adjusting, and pinches his nose. Okay. Okay he gets it.

“I wasn’t trying to play coy when you asked about the kiss— It genuinely wasn’t my idea.”

Venom _squeezes_ around his chest— somewhere in the vicinity of his lungs— and Eddie inhales sharply.

“Eddie? Are you okay?”

“ _Yes_ ,” and the word comes out more breathless and compromising than he intends— Eddie can feel the _mortification_ sweep through him almost as quickly as Venom’s amusement.

“So. Is your. Company… _there_.”

Eddie really doesn’t like the grin that colors her voice.

“ _No_ , uh,” Eddie’s voice is strangled and he thinks about hanging up again. “Sorry. The, uh, cat clawed me.”

“The. Cat— the cat that you don’t allow in your apartment because it peed on your couch last time, that cat?”

“Uh. He’s. Adjusted a lot quicker than I thought he would.”

It sounds thin to Eddie’s ears. _We’re_ definitely _talking about phone etiquette_ , he thinks loudly. Venom huffs, amused and sullen all at once. “You’re _a hundred times_ worse than the cat,” Eddie hisses.

“ _Oh_?”

“I. Anne. Can I. Call you back.”

Anne doesn’t even try to hide her amusement. “Yeah, you can, Eddie. Be careful with the… ah, cat— I’d tell you to tell your company I said ‘hi,’ but I don’t think they’d appreciate that.”

 _We would, actually, appreciate that_ , Venom says casually— like he hadn’t squeezed Eddie’s lungs a few moments ago.

“Yup. Yeah. I’m going to kick him out right now—”

Anne laughs again. “Bye, Eddie, have _fun_.”

 _If only she knew_ , Venom rumbles; and. He doesn’t want to think about where that thought _immediately_ goes.

“ _Venom._ ”

 _She thought you had… company_ , Venom says casually. He manifests, curling tentacles slowly over Eddie’s shoulders— a tendril automatically goes to the pulse at his throat. Eddie tries to breathe, to make his heart-rate slow, but the slow slide of Venom’s tendrils inching along his skin doesn’t help. _We were maintaining the the facade_.

Eddie ignores the small curl of heat that crops up at that, shoves it back down before Venom can notice it and sighs. “You’re a dick.”

 _I am not a phallus_.

“You _know_ what I mean.”

There’s a pause and Eddie tries hard not to think about the curl of Venom’s tentacles along his arms, the touch at his pulse. _You are upset, Eddie_.

“Not really— okay. Kind of. I’m _annoyed_ ,” Eddie says quietly. “Maybe don’t do that again.”

Venom presses his face against the shoulder Eddie’s hitched his sweater over— sharp teeth against flesh, and Eddie’s holding his breath— _We will not, Eddie_. He reaches up, absently, trails his fingers along Venom’s neck. _We assumed it was a joke and that it would help. We will not do it again_.

Venom feels apologetic— not even the sulky sort he gets when he eats the last of the chocolate when Eddie’s asleep. He’s being _genuine_ and, not for the first time, it floors Eddie.

“It’s okay, buddy,” his finger tips linger along the curve of Venom’s mouth. His stomach twists, heat burns low in his gut— he thinks he feels an echo of it from Venom. He pulls his hand back, rubs his neck and breathes out slow. Venom twitches— curls small tentacles around Eddie’s arm, twines around his fingers. Eddie grins, rubs his thumb against the tendril along his ring finger. “You’re still a dick.”

 _Maybe so_ , Venom huffs— the closest to a concession he’ll get tonight. _You still have not fed us_.

Eddie snorts. “Alright, that we can do.”

He swears Venom _purrs_ — and that. Yeah, he doesn’t think about _that_ either.

 

* * *

 

Venom stirs, drawn away from some dramatic, show-altering reveal that Eddie doesn’t really care about and manifests, slowly. Eddie hasn’t even been paying attention— he thinks it’s something about Wilson— because he’s been too aware of the fact that his dick has been half-hard for the past half hour for no real reason. Venom looks at Eddie, looking serious instead of smug for once, and says, simply,

“Masturbation is a normal human function.”

Eddie chokes.

“ _What_.”

“You keep thinking about it,” Venom manifests a tendril with his face and looks pointedly down at Eddie’s crotch— _really_ , Eddie thinks incredulously, it’s a non-issue. He’s popped a few boners over the past few months without responding to it and Venom’s never asked him about it _before_. Eddie really doesn’t know why he wants to talk about it _now_ , when Venom’s watching the last season of House which Venom hasn’t stopped hassling him about. “You are trying very loudly to tell yourself to stop thinking about it, Eddie— it’s difficult to watch TV when you are _shouting_.”

“Buddy, _what_ did I tell you about privacy—”

Venom growls, exasperated. “I am _attempting_ to give you privacy, Eddie.”

They’ve been working on re-establishing boundaries as Venom gets stronger— slowly, a lot slower than Eddie thought—, comfortable again in Eddie’s head in a way they didn’t have the luxury to do the first time. Venom’s been careful— they’ve already talked a few times about body-puppeting, about who they can eat, and Eddie’s even haltingly brought up why Venom can’t pretend to be a random one night stand while Eddie’s on the phone.

Eddie inhales. “You can’t start conversations like that, man.”

Venom pauses, meets Eddie’s eye cautiously. “Humans talk about masturbation and intercourse freely on television.”

“Some people like that private, man, you gotta think about it— also. Do you have the alien equivalent of—”

“No,” Venom answers quickly. “I am very aware of your,” a pause, he narrows his eyes, and Eddie can feel the thought he’s putting into how to refer to Eddie’s dick without making Eddie uncomfortable. It’s sweet. Eddie tries to ignore how that makes his stomach _twist_. “…Predicament.”

“ _Great_.”

“We share this body, Eddie.”

Eddie sighs, rubs the heels of his palms against his eyes. “No, I know. That’s not your fault.”

“Yet, you are frustrated.”

“Again— not really you, buddy.”

Venom’s confused, he can feel the confusion coiling in his chest and a small spark of anxiety radiating from the symbiote. Eddie doesn’t blame him; Venom’s extremely limited knowledge of sex is from shows like Grey’s Anatomy— he really has to find something other than medical dramas—, some scattered memories of Anne, and a few memorable boyfriends and girlfriends from college. And. They’ve never really talked about sex. It’s a topic that Venom seems to shy away from— which is a little weird because he didn’t seem to shy away from any other embarrassing shit.

(Really, answering questions about food poisoning while Eddie was lying on the bathroom floor wasn’t fun— especially after Venom, gleefully, let him know he was letting Eddie suffer from food poisoning _on purpose_.)

He trails a finger along Venom’s manifested neck— unthinking— and Venom makes a low noise, heated, almost. Eddie shifts a little when his dick twitches. He’s not going to think about that right now. Venom leans into the touch.

“So, it’s considered rude to jerk off in the presence of others.”

“Ah,” Venom grins and Eddie’s already sighing, tired and fond, “so you’re being a good ‘roommate,’ as you say.”

“Yeah. Trying to be.”

Venom hums— curls a tendril around Eddie’s index finger before melting back into Eddie’s skin. He can feel him, shifting, curling along his spine before— Gone.

Eddie sits up straight, feet slamming down on the ground, and eyes going wide. “Venom?”

 _Still here, Eddie_ , Venom sounds apologetic at least, presses against the pulse in Eddie’s throat, his wrist, and Eddie sinks back into the couch.

From the window, the cat meows.

“God, sorry— that just. That felt weird.”

 _I didn’t mean to upset you,_ Venom hums. He manifests enough to form the ghost of a hand to press into Eddie’s sweaty, shaking palm. Venom’s voice is low and sweet when he rumbles, close to Eddie’s ear, _I would never leave you, Eddie._

For a second, Eddie thinks wildly if he hadn’t had the absolute shit scared of him that that probably would have tipped him over from half-hard to ready to go. He stifles the thought before Venom can glean it.

_I can do other things while you. Attend to yourself— that was what I wanted to demonstrate to you, Eddie._

“So like. A ‘me’ thing— not a ‘we’ thing.”

Venom huffs— offended as if it isn’t his idea Eddie’s parroting back at him. _Yes, a temporary reprieve— so you do not feel like a bad roommate._

Eddie laughs a little. “Probably not tonight, bud, you scared the shit outta me and I’m not up for it anymore.”

Venom hums, strengthens his presence and Eddie sinks deeper into the couch, relieved and suddenly exhausted. “Don’t feel like being alone right now.” And Venom manifests again, this time along Eddie’s neck, draped there across his shoulder, tendrils dripping slowly down his shoulder and arm. He feels a touch against his elbow, the hollow of his wrist, before Venom wraps a tentacle around his fingers— ring first— before withdrawing again. He keeps his weight at Eddie’s shoulder.

_Turn up the volume._

“You took a turn to bossy real quick.”

Eddie can feel the pleased curve of Venom’s smile against his neck and tries not to think about the way the touch lingers at the back of his mind.

 

* * *

 

The one good thing about not being able to get out of bed some days is that it gives Venom time to take over— to drag Eddie through the motions of a morning routine. Venom does the little things, the hardest things to do on days like these— starts coffee, microwaves a breakfast burrito, feeds and plays with the cat on the little patio of their apartment while the coffee brews. And. Eddie’s not sure if letting Venom take on his bad mornings is a good habit to start, but it helps and Venom’s surprisingly patient with him.

 _Thanks, V_ , he thinks hazily as Venom gently rubs the cat’s chin.

 _You’re welcome, Eddie_ , Venom rumbles back.

The coffee pot bubbles noisily and the microwave beeps again— reminding them it’s finished— and the cat quietly purrs, rubs its cheek against their hand.

 

* * *

 

Anne and Dan end up taking Eddie to lunch to some new vegan place she’s been wanting to try despite Eddie’s protest that he’s really not that into vegan. But then Dan— who’s still eager to push healthier eating at Eddie after he realized that Eddie lived on take out five out of seven days of the week— insists it’s _great_ , _really_ , for a vegan place because there’s so many _options_. And, really, Eddie thinks he’s becoming a bit less of a nice guy and more of a doormat, because the combined force of Anne and Dan finds himself staring down the barrel of a meatless burger and a loud, upset Venom.

 _Why would you let her do this to us_ , Venom hisses with less malicious intent and more of the intent of a sulky toddler force to eat their vegetables. Eddie, instead of trying to respond, bites into half the burger and tries not to wince when Venom _wails_.

Anne looks a strange mix of pitying and amused despite herself. “That bad, huh?”

Eddie attempts to say no around a mouthful of soy patty and vegan egg— _Why would you make a fake egg_ , Venom grumbles testily, his mood only lightening a little when Eddie chokes— and shakes his head. Anne’s expression edges away from pitying to full amused and Eddie’s starting to remember how _mean_ she can be sometimes.

 _It is good she keeps you in line_ , Venom offers, _especially if you are going to continue to feed us. Whatever this is_

 _This was_ her _idea_ , Eddie thinks back petulantly and takes a more measured bite of his burger.

Venom slides around Eddie’s shoulders, lingers around his neck and Eddie can feel himself twitch in response. _You agreed to it, Eddie,_ is the whispered response. Eddie swears he can feel the brush of Venom’s teeth against his ear and— _public_. They’re in _public_. Venom laughs. _We did not show ourselves_.

That still doesn’t stop the flush that rises at the back of Eddie’s neck. The week’s been too cool for him to reasonably take off his sweater so Eddie twitches uncomfortably as Venom trails along under his skin.

“We can go somewhere else if you want,” Dan offers with a small frown and Eddie feels very aware of his facial expressions.

“ _No_ ,” Eddie chokes out and the flush rises to his cheeks at how strained his voice is. “Thanks, Dan, but that’s. Really not necessary.”

“Are you feeling okay, Eddie?” Dan asks all genuine earnestness and Eddie catches the fond look Anne casts over at Dan and he feels a pang of jealousy.

 _We could still eat him_.

 _No_.

Eddie can feel a difference in the feeling— the gut-wrenching longing he feels isn’t attached to Anne, not really, there’s a little bit of a ghost of a feeling there that he’s used to now but. That fondness, the soft edge to Anne’s eyes and the slight tilt of her lips as she smiles slow— that sweetness. He misses _that_.

“I’m fine,” Eddie says a little dazedly, “thanks— I’m feeling a bit off, up late finishing a story you know.”

Dan claps him on the shoulder— easy, friendly; Eddie has to force himself to not flinch away from the touch.

Venom trails along the pulse points in his wrist and neck, close enough that Eddie can see a slow pulse of black in the hollow of his wrist. He tugs his sweater a little further down his hands and awkwardly takes another bite of his burger.

_But Anne—_

_That’s not it_ , Eddie thinks a little wretchedly. It’d be so much easier if it _was_ about Anne. _Gimme a little bit, buddy_.

Venom _radiates_ unhappiness— curls tightly around Eddie’s wrist like he wants to manifest there and start an argument in the middle of the half-filled restaurant patio. But he recedes, slow and a little sulky, like he’s waiting for Eddie to tell him to come back, and settles heavy in Eddie’s gut— like a nervous ache.

 _We’ll talk tonight, after work_ , he thinks a little desperately but Venom hums, and stays where he is.

“Eddie?”

He blinks, looks over at Anne— and she has that look again, pinched eyebrows and a thin frown, and Eddie twitches. “Sorry, spaced out a bit— what were you saying?”

Anne rolls her eyes, good-natured and exasperatedly fond, “I was asking if you had plans to see your mystery someone again.”

Venom’s weight in his stomach becomes leaden and Eddie has to play off his wince as a nervous laugh. “Uh. No. I don’t really.”

“Hm. Do they have a name—”

“I don’t. Know how serious it is actually— think it might have been a one time thing, you know.”

Venom’s presence lifts— goes near imperceptible and Eddie pinches himself under the table to keep the panicked noise that builds in his chest from escaping. Anne narrows her eyes. “Well, I won’t pry,” Anne says delicately and Eddie lets himself visibly wilt in relief. “Oh my god, Eddie. I’m not gonna push it I was wondering if you getting out there again—”

Dan is practically vibrating in his chair, stealing glances from Anne to Eddie, and Eddie really hates his life sometimes. He’s trying to rein in his panic from Venom doing the equivalent of, _I need some air_ , and he’s fielding questions about the fake one night stand that’s Venom’s fault.

 _You’re an asshole_ , he thinks loudly.

“It— y’know. It just kinda _happened._  Really crazy night and then— I dunno. Haven’t really talked about anything. Or at all.”

Anne nods. “Well, sometimes having some fun is good.”

Eddie feels a low roll of anger— an edge of complete and utter despair— that feels completely separate from himself. He blinks down at his burger. “Yeah,” Eddie says slowly. “I did kinda like him.”

Dan awkwardly looks from Eddie to Anne before saying, low, almost like he’s only talking to Anne, “I’ll go deal with the check,” and leaves before Eddie can protest that he can pay for himself.

“It’s on us, Eddie,” Anne says once Dan’s inside. “You didn’t seem that into it— the least we can do is cover you.”

“I _do_ have a paycheck, Annie.”

“You can take us for sushi next time.”

Eddie waits— hopes for Venom to interrupt his thought with how he likes sushi or how that’s the first good thing Anne’s offered today. Eddie’s left with his own silence and indecision— and it lasts for a beat too long.

“Eddie,” and Anne reaches out, rests her fingers lightly along the back of his palm; and the touch is grounding. Eddie smiles a little helplessly. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I am,” Eddie says quietly. He doesn’t move away from Anne’s touch, but he doesn’t try to push for more— he takes what she’s offered. Casual affection feels nice, it’s something he’s missed. “I really am, Annie. I’ve been doing great.” Anne smiles and Eddie can see the slight sheen to her eyes. “Thank you,” he says quietly. “I really am just tired.”

“Good,” Anne pulls her hand back, relief widening her smile and lessening the tension around her eyes. “I’m glad you’re doing better, Eddie, _really_.” He smiles back. “Also, I’ll stop asking about your sex life— it seems touchy.”

Eddie sputters. “It’s not _touchy_.” _It’s nonexistent_ , he thinks.

Anne grins, wry and mischievous. “Let me know if you’re ever up for a double date with your mystery man.”

“ _Annie_.”

Venom stirs— becomes a tangible weight in Eddie’s stomach again, and Eddie huffs.

_You good?_

Venom grumbles, _Hungry_ , and goes quiet again.

Dan comes back— with a to-go plate of chocolate mousse and two slices of vegan cheesecake— and Eddie, already reaching for the mousse says, cheerfully, “Dan, you’re a lifesaver,” and startles a laugh out of the both of them.

 

* * *

 

“So what was it?”

_What was what, Eddie._

Eddie leans back further in his seat, scans the scarce office, before saying, quietly, “You just. _Left_. At lunch, you haven’t done that to me since the last time I had a,” he pauses, trying not to think about the fact that he had jerked off that morning and _almost_ moaned Venom’s name, “‘me’ thing.”

The silence that follows is embarrassed, ashamed. _I. Had to think_.

Eddie narrows his eyes as an intern meets his eye and they look away, awkward and jerky. He leans down, fishes the dollar-store bluetooth he bought last weekend, and presses it into his ear. “Anything you want to share, buddy?”

He can feel Venom considering— he’s nervous, almost anxious, a little fevered, like he’s found out something he doesn’t know how to deal with. _Not at this moment_ , Venom finally drawls.

“Alright,” Eddie says softly, and then, because the anxious burn in his gut makes it hard to resist, “Is it a human thing?”

 _Yes_ , Venom draws the word out, awkwardly. _When a… way to describe this has been found, you will be the first human I ask_.

“Happy to help.”

He ignores the warmth that radiates out from his chest— if only to spare Venom some more embarrassment— but he reaches up, taps his thumb against his throat and grins when he feels a tendril reach back. “We’re in public,” he says fondly, without reprimand and Venom hums, sinks back into his skin and stays there and Eddie settles in for his shift pulling up documents on one of Drake’s old donors; some guy named Bennett who seems a bit _too_ focused on alien involvement. It could be something, but his attention’s split on Venom who’s hovering beneath the surface of his skin, radiating a soft, hesitant contentment.

“Next time we go shopping,” he murmurs, turning towards the tendrils still swiping over his pulse. He presses his smile to Venom’s skin and feels the symbiote waver; he melts halfway into Eddie’s skin and he has to bite back a laugh, “you can make the list, V.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> an anniversary comes and goes
>
>> “We _should_ look like we’re at least eating some sort of real food—”
>> 
>> _We don’t eat “real food” Eddie— you gagged last time Dan fed you spinach._
>> 
>> “We said we wouldn’t talk about that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here we are again,

In college Eddie used to run himself down to three hours of sleep and had done three consecutive twenty credit semesters before he’d crashed hard during winter break and Anne, who’d been an angel who not only had kicked his ass through an upper GE class but had been the one who had finally convinced him to slow down. A bit.

He’d been like that in high school too— running himself ragged to make his father happy: working part time, killing himself to keep good grades in class, and balancing a surprisingly promising wrestling career and—

It’s never been enough.

Everything he’s done has fallen short because of _who_ he is, intrinsically. So a part of him is bracing for Venom to be gone when he wakes up some mornings— for Venom to have taken the cat they still haven’t named and _leave_.

 _We would never do that,_ Venom says gently, and can feel the hurt that Venom feels before he stifles it— like a knee-jerk reaction.

“I don’t— V. I don’t— I just… I know you wouldn’t,” Eddie tells him a bit helplessly, not quite feeling the conviction of his words. He reaches up to where Venom’s curled around his neck, feels his anxiety soften around the edges when Venom presses his head against his palm and stays there. The bed feels warm like this, inviting in a way that Eddie’s forgotten beds could be. “I _know_.”

 _We will be here, forever,_ Venom purrs, voice booming but somehow soothing. Venom radiates out such profound fondness that Eddie feels his pulse slowing, _We will stay however long you want us._

“Always,” Eddie murmurs, strokes his thumb along Venom’s teeth and shudders when Venom shifts, the points of his teeth grazing along the pads of Eddie’s finger. Venom’s tongue flickers towards Eddie’s hands, brushes slick against his fingers and heat coils through them both— Eddie can feel it in his gut, radiating out of Venom— trying to converge, to combine and swamp them both—

Eddie rolls over, gets his feet onto cold ground and closes his eyes.

Venom pulls back a little, Eddie can feel that the sybmiote’s almost dizzy. And he can also feel rapid fire flashes of emotion— confusion, a flush of embarrassment, and heart-wrenching earnestness.

“ _So_ , how are you feeling today, buddy?” he asks a little breathlessly, automatically reaches up to tangle his fingers in Venom.

He strokes slowly along under Venom’s jaw, careful to keep his fingers away from Venom’s teeth. The touch immediately calms the current of emotion and the small flashes of memory. He sees— Eddie, haloed by light, reaching out his hand to Venom’s diminished, sickly form; burning above the bay with only the thought of Eddie, Eddie, Eddie; the relief and euphoria of finding Eddie in the woods; the heat of kissing him—

_Hungry._

Eddie breathes out slowly— stifles the pang of arousal that’s all him— and nods. “Okay. We can work with that.”

 

* * *

 

Bennett’s name keeps popping up in articles about the Life Foundation; and, at first, Eddie thinks maybe it’s coincidence— just a generous donator, a friend of the family who’s helping smooth things along in the wake of Drake’s disappearance— but he starts inserting himself more and more in the Life Foundation’s stunted reorganization. It’s messy— the mark of someone scrambling— and it’s almost too easy to pick up a thread.

Considering the sudden problems with the Life Foundation, Eddie’s not surprised that the trail seems scattered— like Bennett started covering it up only to forget about key elements. It also seems like a convenient trap, but. There’s just enough there to keep Eddie picking at it.

 _Is it a problem?_ Venom asks sleepily from where he’s curled up next to the cat. Eddie reaches out— gets hissed at by the cat— and ends up trailing his fingers along Venom’s head.

“I’m not sure,” Eddie says distractedly— and keeps digging.

 

* * *

 

The things is— aside from the asshole who threatened Mrs. Chen months ago— Eddie hasn’t been able to run into someone bad enough to justify allowing Venom to eat them.

And, now— a late Friday night after chasing leads about Drake’s donors— he has someone following him. Eddie winds his way down to a dark alleyway, and ducks into it and— Eddie can feel Venom trying. Venom’s hands appear in place of his and can tell that his teeth are now theirs but— they’re still mostly Eddie; and Eddie has a wallet with ten bucks, an overcharged credit card, and a pocket notebook filled with names of different political officials who’d donated to Drake.

 _So,_ Venom thinks bitterly, frustration and anger radiating off of him like a wave of ice, _we’ll be stabbed because we have nothing of worth—_

_V._

They end up hiding in the shadows, tucked between a wall and a dumpster and watch as the would-be mugger who’s been tailing him the last half hour stumbles past where they’re hiding— still half them and half Eddie. Venom doesn’t say anything more and, eventually, when the mugger gets tired of looking for him— he might be drunk because he never once looks where they’re hiding— Venom recedes, shame burning bright at the back of Eddie’s mind.

“V,” Eddie says quietly, “are you okay?”

Venom doesn’t say anything and Eddie sighs, shoves his hands the pockets of his jacket and leaves. The walk back to his bike is quiet, Venom a tight ball of shame and frustration at the back of his mind. He puts his helmet on and drives back to the apartment, trying not to think too much about how quiet Venom is and also trying to stifle the pit of anxiety from himself.

They feed the cat and, with Venom hidden away and sulking, it bares its teeth at Eddie and stalks off to the other side of the balcony. Eddie makes the last of their bag of tater tots and pulls out the last of their chocolate stash, leaves a pile of Hershey’s kisses and mini peanut butter cups for Venom to help himself to as he flips through the news channels.

“Hey,” he finally says when Venom doesn’t appear to eat the chocolate he’s set aside, “you know I’m not mad right?”

A small tendril reaches out for a peanut butter cup and Venom materializes a small head, blinks up at Eddie before turning his attention to the chocolate. He eats quietly and Eddie goes back to flipping through news channels until the toaster oven dings. They split the tater tots— eat in unnerving silence— and Eddie reaches out, pets the top of Venom’s head and Venom shivers.

Eddie doesn’t know what to say, so he thinks about the days Venom gets him out of bed, the nights they stay up half-watching sitcom reruns while they read random Wikipedia articles, the contentedness of companionship. “Just let me know how to help, V,” Eddie says softly, and Venom trembles, almost loses shape.

He feels a wave of confusion, fondness, and something softer that Eddie doesn’t examine too closely coming from Venom, muted and tired, but there all the same.

 _Yes,_ Venom murmurs, cautious and warm, _later though, Eddie, we’ll talk about this later._ Eddie rubs his thumb along his neck where Venom is slowly forming. They fall asleep on the couch, toaster oven still open and candy wrappers scattered along the floor, with Venom half formed and tucked up against Eddie’s jaw.

 

* * *

 

Weekend shopping, as usual, ends with Eddie holding a handheld basket filled with bag of tater tots, three different types of chocolate, and cat food— a small bag of dry in the basket and a box of wet tucked under Eddie’s arm because Venom insists the cat needs both. Venom’s purring at the back of his mind, lazy from giving orders of where Eddie should go in the store, and stays quiet as Eddie considers fruits.

 _That one’s bruised,_ Venom drawls as Eddie starts to bag a mango.

Eddie sighs, reaches for the bluetooth in his pocket, and Venom hands it to him, tentacles lingering along Eddie’s fingertips for a moment and Eddie fumbles. “Thanks,” he mutters as he ducks to press the bluetooth in, “but you couldn’t have told me that _earlier_?”

 _It is fun watching you try to determine what is edible,_ Venom hums, _you don’t seem to have much experience with fresh human food._

“ _Thanks,_ ” Eddie picks up another mango.

_Do we like mangos, Eddie._

Eddie sighs. “Not. Particularly but that’s not the point— we. We can’t just check out with this,” he nods to the slumping bag of tater tots that’s sweating onto one of the bags of chocolate. “We _should_ look like we’re at least eating some sort of real food—”

_We don’t eat “real food” Eddie— you gagged last time Dan fed you spinach._

“We said we wouldn’t talk about that.”

Venom snorts. _Get salami._

“That’s also not… I kind of meant getting fruit and vegetables, V,” Eddie says patiently. He picks up a bundle of spinach, feeling indignant, and thinks he _could_ get back into juicing— _No,_ Venom growls loudly. Eddie sighs and puts the spinach back. “Okay, well, is there anything here,” he gestures to the produce, “you’re not going to immediately shoot down.”

A pause. _Strawberries._

“That was— what’s the angle here, V.”

Venom flares, embarrassed, and twitches Eddie’s hand towards a carton of some strawberries that look like they have a few soft spots. Eddie frowns— watches as his fingers move, curly slowly around the edge of the carton and deposits it in the basket before Venom retreats. Just a shadow of influence, nothing like how when Venom fully takes control.

“Hey,” he says slowly, adjusting his grip on the hand basket, “how are you feeling right now?”

 _We feel_ good _but,_ Venom says slowly. _Hungry._ A long pause, _Still weak._ Venom squirms, goes heavy with anxiety in Eddie’s gut. _We… need to feed._

Eddie frowns. “Okay, so. If we do… eat. Do we have a projected recovery period or.”

 _We. Are unsure,_ Venom sounds withdrawn, ashamed, like he’s hiding something. _We have never had to recover for so long before._

“Well, I told you before— take your time, V. There’s no rush.” Venom hums, retreats a little, shy, and Eddie gets in line for the register. “Let’s try to go out again tonight,” he says, warm and coaxing. “We can try to find you something nice to eat.”

Venom stirs. _Let’s not stay out too late,_ he finally rumbles. _We are too tired to hunt for long._

Eddie grins, drops his armload of groceries on the line. “Sounds good to me— won’t miss any of the sitcom reruns that way.”

_Stop making us sound lame._

Eddie grins. “Well, I hate to tell you this, but we’re pretty lame,” he says reaching up, pressing fingers to the bluetooth, as he watches the cashier ring up their food. The girl’s young, has an undercut, a semicolon tattoo on her wrist, and a rainbow wristband; she looks tired. Her name tag has two faded smiley face stickers, says “My name is Yasmin, Ask Me About Our Rewards Card.”

“How’s your night been?”

Yasmin blinks, customer service smile already at the ready despite the way her eyes droop. “Good,” she chirps, “how about you, sir?”

Venom laughs. _“Sir,” you’re old, Eddie._

Eddie grins back, unthinking, and points to his bluetooth but Yasmin’s already gone back to scanning his bags of chocolate. “It’s been nice enough,” he says pleasantly.

His mind goes back to Venom curling around his chest as he got dressed, bothering him that Eddie was wasting their weekend sleeping— _we don’t need to sleep,_ Venom has purred as he brushed his teeth. The tone had made Eddie’s stomach lurch and he’d splashed a little extra cold water on his cheeks.

“That’s good,” she says, canned warmth that Eddie can’t— and doesn’t— begrudge her. He remembers his shitty shifts at the 24/7 grocery near his college. “Your total’s eighty-eight dollars and sixty-four cents.”

Eddie can’t help the pained noise he makes and Venom tsks. _What did you buy, Eddie._

“Stocking up early for Halloween?” Yasmin asks wryly, a small flash of genuine playfulness and Eddie smiles.

“Something like that,” he says.

She doesn’t press any further, but there’s still a slight grin at the corners of her mouth. Eddie counts his pennies and Venom grumbles, _Should use the credit card, Eddie._

_No, definitely not._

Yasmin frowns as she counts Eddie’s change. “Do you need any bags, sir?”

Venom’s already reaching into Eddie’s pockets for one of the reusable bags they bought from one of Maria’s friends— they’d asked for ten, Eddie had given them two twenties. “Oh, sorry no, I’m good— my,” he pauses, takes the bag from Venom’s outreaching tendrils, “partner made me buy some last time.”

 _We didn’t make you do anything,_ Venom tells him distractedly. He starts puzzling over something as Eddie starts stacking bags of candy into the bag.

_You okay?_

_Yes,_ Venom hisses. _We are fine— we are. Looking for an answer._

_Anything I can help with?_

_No._

Eddie frowns at the bag of cat food. _V…_

“Sir.” Yasmin’s giving him a strange look. Eddie looks up, hand curled around the strawberries Venom picked out. “Did you want your receipt?”

“Oh. Yes, thank you— sorry,” he gestures to the bluetooth again. “Partner’s. Chatty tonight.”

 _We are not,_ Venom says crossly.

“Have a good evening, sir,” Yasmin tells him, attention already turning to the woman who’s started putting bag after bag of chips on the line.

“You too,” Eddie says, attention already turning to Venom who’s both sulky and rummaging through his mind again. He tucks the box of wet cat food under one arm and the grocery bag under the other. “Okay— what. What are you looking for.”

 _A definition,_ Venom says carefully. _Do not worry, Eddie, we will take care of this—_

“You could just ask, y’know— it’d save you time and me a headache.”

Venom huffs. _We do not have headaches anymore when—_

“V. That’s not really the point, I’m just saying I could—”

Eddie’s phone rings.

_It’s Anne._

“Okay, well, shit,” Eddie fumbles, not quite managing to reach into his pocket, but Venom’s already drawn the phone out, Anne’s confused voice coming out of the tiny speaker. “We’re still in public, you know,” he mumbles, but no one’s paying attention to them. Venom tucks the phone between Eddie’s ear and his shoulder and curls a tendril around the bluetooth in Eddie’s other ear, draws it out and into his jacket pocket.

“Um, hello? Eddie— who are you talking to—”

“No one, no one— Annie, hi, sorry. Had my hands full.”

He can practically hear her squint. “Who… you know what. Nevermind— how are you, Eddie?”

“Oh, you know, same as usual. Went and picked up some,” he looks at the wilting bag of tater tots and the chocolate Venom had picked out, “essentials. How about you, Annie? Dan still have you on that health food kick?”

“It’s not a ‘kick,’ Eddie,” Anne says wryly.

“Says the woman who used to eat take out every other night.”

“ _Hey._ ”

Eddie grins. “Don’t test me, Ms. Weying, I know all your secrets.”

Anne laughs.

 _She sounds happy, Eddie,_ Venom says softly, tendrils wrapped around Eddie’s neck, tight, like he’s clinging onto something that’s about to vanish. _We,_ Venom pauses, hesitant, _you make her happy._

Venom brings up flashes of date nights, Anne’s hand warm against his. And it hurts, a little, in that way a dull ache radiates out; but, he has— well. Eddie feels happy— Eddie thinks about nights in, stretched out on the couch with Venom half-formed on his chest, feeding the cat together, casual coexistence that was so intimate that it warmed Eddie even on the days he swore he couldn’t feel anything again. Venom goes still, nervous and curious.

 _I don’t make her happy like that anymore, big guy,_ Eddie thinks calmly, grins a little, _and I’m okay with that._

_Eddie, do—_

“So, Eddie—” Eddie blinks. He has to stop talking to Venom when he’s already mid conversation. Venom shudders a little, winds around Eddie’s neck like a scarf and presses close to Eddie’s pulse. “—Dan’s trying out a new recipe and we were wondering if you wanted to join us,” Anne sounds a little too casual, like there’s something else on her mind but she’s unsure if she _can_ ask.

Venom curls tighter around Eddie’s neck, he feels warm against Eddie’s skin, almost like a flush, and rumbles, _She wants to see you?_  

 _We’re really not trying to win her back, V,_ Eddie pinches his nose. “Um. I mean if it’s not an inconvenience—”

“He wanted to invite you but he got too shy,” Eddie hears Dan splutter in the background and horrified squawk of, _Anne_ , “Kidding,” he can picture the grin she’s probably flashing Dan, self-satisfied and knowing, “but no it’s not an inconvenience, Eddie, we want to check in— see how you’re feeling.” 

 _We don’t want vegan,_ Venom growls sullenly. _If we go make sure it’s_ not _vegan—_

“Well, I mean, I’m feeling fine, Annie—” _V, you gotta stop being so loud—_

“I know— and I’m glad you are— we both are, Eddie, but—”

“I mean, I appreciate the invite but I had—”

“We wanted to make sure you were okay since it’s— y’know. The anniversary of. _Well_.”

 _We were going to try to hunt,_ Venom growls moodily, nuzzling against Eddie’s neck in a way that probably shouldn’t be so distracting but has Eddie steadying his breathing. _V, I know— I’m trying—_ “What anniversary is that again?”

Anne and Venom both go very quiet.

“Eddie it’s,” Anne pauses, awkward, and Eddie wonders if Dan’s trying to listen in, “it’s been a year since Venom… passed.”

 _Has it really been that long?_ Eddie stops walking, the box of cat food is heavy under his arm and the strap of the grocery bag is starting to slide down his arm. Venom shifts, awkwardly, readjusts the strap and slips out along the sleeves of his jacket to hold the box of cat food steady. Eddie takes a slow step. _Has it really been a year, V?_

Venom stays quiet.

“Eddie? Hey, are you okay?”

 _V? I’m not mad— just—_ “Yeah, sorry, Annie, I. Really didn’t realize. I,” he shifts the bag over his shoulder, runs his fingers along Venom, _I’m not mad,_ he thinks again as the symbiote sends out pulses of anxiety and fear, “I feel great,” he says faintly, and he can hear that it sounds like a lie, “I really do, Annie, I promise.”

“Okay,” she draws the word out, like she’s waiting for Eddie to go back on what he’s said, “well, did you want to come over tonight? Dan really is trying a new recipe—”

“You really got yourself a house husband there don’t ya,” Eddie says without thinking.

Dan yelps on the other end of the line and Anne goes quiet before she snorts. “Smooth, Eddie.”

Eddie huffs. “I didn’t mean to sound like a dick, really. I _do_ like the guy— but.” He can feel Venom’s anticipation like a knot of anxiety in his stomach, “I _do_ have plans tonight.” Anne hmms and Eddie stammers. “Not— I mean.”

“So. The one-night stand—” Venom growls a little and Eddie sighs. “—or . Something else? Someone else—”

“Okay, it’s. Sort of a date.”

Venom radiates displeasure.

 _You’re the reason she thinks I’m dating someone, V,_ Eddie thinks patiently. 

Venom sulks.

“Okay. I’m aware it’s none of my business, but. Eddie. Is this the same guy—”

“Yeah,” Eddie says slowly, he digs his chin into his Venom-scarf and Venom huffs, “it was another last minute thing— you know how it goes.”

“You were never the most spontaneous, Eddie,” Anne says kindly.

“You wound me, Annie,” but he knows— It took _energy_ to be spontaneous.

 _We make you spontaneous,_ Venom preens and Eddie rolls his eyes.

_Hard not to be when you can make me start dancing in the street on your good days._

Venom snorts, radiates amusement despite the sour edge to his mood.

“Well. If he can make you be spontaneous— maybe he’s not too bad.”

 _If only she knew,_ Eddie thinks, and lands back on the fact that— he hasn’t told Anne or Dan that he’s had Venom back for—

 _Worry about that later,_ Venom coaxes. _We have a reason to not eat Dan’s awful meatless meal._

“Yeah,” he tells Anne slowly, trying to keep the laugh from his voice as he nuzzles against Venom, “he’s great.”

 

* * *

 

“So, do I need to eat. A person or—”

_We can make it so it is our head not… yours._

“Okay, that still sounds… kinda disgusting, V.”

Venom stays quiet and shame knots in Eddie’s stomach. He really shouldn’t be surprised that the semantics of eating people would have to catch up with him at some point, but. He didn’t imagine that he would be negotiating on how best to eat a mugger, but he also didn’t imagine he would end up with a _sort of_ thing for an alien cohabitating his body.

He doesn’t linger on the thought long.

 _I am sorry, Eddie,_ Venom says softly.

Eddie sets his soda can down. The cat meows loud and sad from the window propped open just barely, sitting next to its half-full bowl. “What’re you apologizing for?”

_If it were not for… my nature we would not need to feed like this._

Eddie opens his mouth, reeling at the concern in Venom’s voice.

_We… if this were avoidable, at this time, we would not make you do this, Eddie._

Eddie closes his mouth and runs a hand through his hair. The cat meows louder, pushes a paw against the partly open window. Eddie turns, hand already reaching for the cabinet they keep the cans of wet food in and frowns.

“I mean,” he finally says as he cracks open the tin of food, Venom curls slowly out of his shoulder, almost shy, “thank you? For being considerate— you’re not like. Eating my kidneys or something are you?”

“ _No._ ”

“Hey, no offense meant, I just gotta double check— I need my organs y’know.”

Venom’s quiet— and, Eddie can’t quite figure out the tangle of emotions he’s feeling from the symbiote. He thinks he feels frustration— okay, he shouldn’t tease when Venom’s obviously been weakening himself for Eddie— and he feels shame. “You’re not weak, you know that right, V?”

It feels strange, to be on the other side of this conversation.

“You— listen, you’re _incredible_ ,” Venom startles and a rush of affectionate happiness washes over Eddie like a wave, “you went from literally eating my heart—”

“Eddie.”

“—V, you were eating me from the inside out when we first met. You didn’t eat a cat because you thought it was the right thing and now,” Eddie frowns again, moves to set the cat food on the windowsill. The cat stares up at him, eyes narrow. “You’ve gone months without biting off someone’s head because you’re thinking about my feelings.” 

“We have been recovering— if not for that—”

Eddie feels a stab of guilt. “V, why didn’t you tell me how bad it was? Why couldn’t I tell?”

Venom extends a tendril and slowly pets down the cat’s spine. “We did not want to worry you— kept it hidden, we are receiving enough sustenance to thrive—”

“I think ‘thrive,’ is the wrong word,” Eddie reaches out a hand and gets a swat for his troubles. “We’d be able to be— well, y’know badass if we were thriving.” 

Venom goes quiet again, recedes into Eddie’s skin. The cat eats quietly and Eddie watches as the sun slowly sets, the thick cloud haloed with gold. The scent of rain is heavy in the air, they’ll have to try and get the cat in the apartment or set up a tarp or something.

 _Eddie,_ Venom sounds brittle, self conscious, _do you only want us to be… badass._

“ _What._ ”

He can feel Venom curling, defensively, along his chest, wrapping around his ribs and gently around his heart like he’s making it so he’s so rooted in Eddie’s body, like Eddie wouldn’t be able to get him out.

 _We are okay like this,_ Venom says unsurely, _we are happy like this— we could do more with more chemicals but we do not need more than what we have. You give me enough to survive, Eddie. I am happy._

Eddie feels nauseous.

“V, you said yourself you’re not recovered.”

_That doesn’t matter, Eddie— we are happy, I have enough to take care of you—_

“Let me— I can do this for us, for you.” 

 _Oh,_ Venom doesn’t quite say it, doesn’t quite think it, but it rushes through Eddie’s body like a sigh. Venom slides away from Eddie’s ribs, his heart and comes to the surface of Eddie’s skin, slow, dripping, and settles along Eddie’s neck, curling down the center of his chest. He lingers over Eddie’s heart.

“I’m gonna be honest, I’m not looking forward to eating a person,” Eddie tries to keep the humor apparent in his voice, in their bond, and Venom rumbles like he’s laughing, “but I mean, I make you try Dan’s vegan recipes more than you’d like so.” He runs his fingers along the tendrils wrapped along his collarbones and Venom shudders.

“We’re both making sacrifices here in some way, V.”

 _My Eddie,_ Venom purrs— and his throat tightens, the heat in his gut is so sudden it almost makes him nauseous— and butts his head under Eddie’s chin and murmurs against his jaw, “There is no better host on this earth.”

“Except the cat.”

Venom laughs and Eddie grins.

They eat two muggers— the second easier to stomach than the first— and end up stealing a few live lobsters before stopping by Mrs. Chen’s to buy two bags of chocolate.

It’s after midnight and raining by the time they get back. The cat is sleeping in the apartment, next to the cat bed Eddie bought a month or two ago; Eddie feels warm, content.

 _Shower, Eddie,_ Venom murmurs drowsily as Eddie holds up an unwrapped bite-sized Snickers for him. Venom takes it, tongue wrapping messily around the candy and licks the melted chocolate from Eddie’s fingers.

Cannibalism aside, it’s a good night. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> an old friend offers some help.
>
>> “We were made to find each other Eddie. There was never a chance we would not meet and become we.”

Eddie gets a message from a dummy email talking about a place that Bennett kept the people he sold to Drake. Normally, Eddie would trash it— but there’s lists from the past few years. Venom’s quiet as Eddie goes through the files, a pit of dread slowly growing in his stomach even as Venom tries to soothe him.

“They have Maria’s name,” Eddie says quietly.

 _This is,_ Venom says voice slow and wary, _convenient._

Eddie taps his fingers against his laptop. He recognizes other names— and Venom’s right. “We should look into this.”

_Worried._

“Yeah— I know you are, bud, but. What if he starts doing it again— nabbing people for someone else? Someone just as bad— worse than Drake was?”

Venom materializes along his shoulders, and bumps his head against Eddie’s chin.

 _Then we will look into it,_ Venom agrees with a pulse of anxiety. Eddie knows Venom still feels weak, a little hazy taking control even though they’ve been easing into dealing with muggers and back alley lurkers. Eddie hums, nuzzles Venom where he’s still curled along his jaw and Venom melts and acquiesces with a rumbling, almost embarrassed, _We_ are _hungry._

 

* * *

 

It’s almost too easy to find the meeting spot— a shipping warehouse along the water that’s so forgettable that Eddie almost laughs. Venom huffs from where he’s wrapped around Eddie’s neck as a scarf. _This is suspicious, Eddie._

“A bit,” Eddie mumbles into Venom’s skin. Venom rumbles and reflexively tightens a little. “If anyone’s here they won’t know who I am— I’m. I’m not doing an article on this so no one thinks I should be here.”

 _You’re sure of yourself,_ Venom sounds displeased and manifests eyes to blink up at Eddie. At least he looks like a scarf pattern. _What if it’s a trap for_ us _._

Eddie grins, reaches up like he’s going to adjust his scarf and runs his index finger along Venom, slowly, soothingly. Venom melts against the touch. “Even if it’s for us, they aren’t expecting _us_.”

Venom harrumphs but settles.

 _We’ll come back tonight,_ Eddie thinks, turning to walk away as a worker appears from behind the gate, looking straight at him. _I’m sure you’ll be able to eat a few bad guards._

Venom doesn’t say anything, only radiates back slight contentment that can’t quite mask his apprehension.

 

* * *

 

The evening rolls by smoothly, he and Venom spend the pre-dusk hours on the couch with reruns of Friends playing in the background while Venom helps Eddie organize his notes. There’s no real set event happening at the warehouse tonight— part of the reason Eddie wants to go tonight— and he thinks that if he could just get in to get something that corroborates the emails he’s been getting—

_Eddie._

He makes a distracted noise and Venom places a small tentacle on his jaw. _You are distracted— distressed._

“I just. I owe this to everyone, V. If I’d been able to actually do my work right— take down Drake right the first time—”

_Do not think like that, Eddie._

Venom holds something back— an admonishment maybe, but Eddie’s attention drifts back to the blueprints that Venom is holding down with another tentacle. _We will stop this man— eat some of his guards in front of him too._ Venom materializes a head so he can bare his teeth in a grin that’s more Venom stretching his tongue further out and squinting his eyes and Eddie can’t help but grin back.

_We will scare the bad man into stopping— and if he does not we will eat his pancreas._

The fondness that swamps over Eddie feels unexpected— but, at the same time completely normal. Venom’s eyes widen and he loses shape, sinks back into Eddie’s skin with an embarrassed rumble. He loves that about Venom— for a self-labelled apex predator he gets flustered at the smallest twinge of affection.

Venom snakes out again, head peeking out from Eddie’s shoulder, teeth against skin in a way that makes Eddie restrain a shudder, and wide eyes staring. Eddie feels his curiosity— as tangible as the tentacles Venom has around his wrists.

“What’s wrong, big guy?”

Venom squirms— flushed with contentment at the endearment— and blinks at him before disappearing back under his skin. Eddie pauses, fingers still splayed along his notes and moves a hand to his chest, presses against his sternum and Venom flutters— like he wants to come to the surface of Eddie’s skin and wind into the touch. He stays hidden.

 _We will talk about it later,_ Venom decides, still shivering and a little confused. _We must concentrate on the plans— who can we eat._

Eddie snorts.

“Well, we can’t eat Bennett— he’s talked about running for office recently, if he goes missing it’ll be weird.”

Venom makes a displeased noise.

“Hired muscle is fair game— but I don’t think Bennett will be there tonight anyway.”

_Then who do we eat, Eddie._

“Well. We’ll have to see— don’t. We’re actually not going to eat a security monitor if they have one.”

_Obviously. If the security monitor hurts us, however—_

“V.”

 _Fine,_ Venom agrees petulantly— like Eddie’s given away the last candy bar. _We will behave— even though we’re hungry._ They’re not really— even though it’s been a week or so since the last muggers, Venom’s seemed better— stronger—, more inclined to take full control when Eddie allows it and with a lot more success.

Eddie gets to his feet, starts piling his notes up and Venom finally manifests again. Four tentacles help him pick up the other side of the table, stacking papers neatly into piles and helps Eddie cram everything back into his lower desk shelf.

_Almost time._

“Yeah, let’s just feed the cat and we’ll go.”

The cat meows loudly when Eddie rattles the full dish, even purrs a little when Venom manifests.

“Why is it that he’s the only animal I’ve met who’s dumb enough to walk up to you.”

_He likes me._

“Is it a previous host thing?”

 _No,_ Venom drawls happily, _he is a smart creature— the most clever of his kind. I would not have chosen him as my host otherwise._

“So,” Eddie says as he holds out his hand for the cat to sniff, “you have higher standards for animal hosts than human hosts then.”

The cat hisses when Eddie holds out a hand.

 _We wouldn’t say that, Eddie,_ Venom hums, he sounds a little offended but mostly amused and fond, _you are extraordinarily unique— perfect for us— we’ve told you this before._

Eddie rubs the back of his neck. “I guess that’s one way of putting,” he tells Venom shyly; and then says, to the cat, “you’ll like me one day— I _feed_ you.”

Venom laughs and the sound warms Eddie despite the chill coming on with the setting sun. Venom curls along his shoulders, drips down Eddie’s shoulders and presses against his back— “ _You_ like me because I feed you.”

Venom laughs quietly— the feeling bubbling out from the center of Eddie’s chest. He feels warm, a little wound tight, like they’re standing on the edge of something important— something life changing. He feels Venom hovering over the back of his palm, gliding over his fingers, waiting.

“I,” and Venom pauses, Eddie can feel Venom’s thoughts, rapidfire but too faint to pick out anything in particular. Eddie twitches when he feels Venom’s teeth press to his neck. The weight at his back feels heavier. “ _I_ like you for many reasons, Eddie.”

Eddie shivers and Venom presses closer, tentacles heavy along his arms and curling slowly along his collarbones. He _wants_ and he can feel the echo from Venom— that unmistakable curl of _Venom’s_ feelings. It would be so easy to get lost in this; but the light along the skyline is dimming and the air from where Venom isn’t pressed against him is getting colder.

“Venom—”

 _Later?_ Venom sounds like he’s coming out of a fever dream— heat drunk and disoriented.

Eddie’s heart catches, gets lodged in his throat and he smiles a little wryly. “Yeah, little later, buddy— but. Tonight. When we’re back. We’ll talk— like we need to.”

Venom rumbles, _Of course, Eddie,_ content and trusting and nuzzles against Eddie’s neck and Eddie feels a pang— longing and hopeful enough that Eddie feels like he’s young and in love again— reckless, willing to do anything. Eddie grins.

As Venom is enveloping him, taking over, making them _one_ , he presses his knuckles to his lips and says, “Time for some heroics, V,” before Venom launches them onto the rooftop of the next building.

 

* * *

 

The warehouse is quiet— dark and cold, unwelcoming in a way that Eddie expected but still manages to unnerve him. Venom moves slowly, sticking to the bigger shadows, prickling unease as they watch for movement.

“Eddie, we don’t like this,” Venom’s voice is steady, but he can feel the shudder that runs through their body. Eddie keeps their hands steady— already feeling the familiar unsteadiness that comes with Venom’s loss of control.

 _We’re okay,_ he says, voice lost in the mass of their combined form, but Venom steadies, anchors onto that assurance in Eddie’s voice and moves forward slowly, on all fours. _Probably had an early night._ He hides his own apprehension the best he can as Venom advances, their eyes scanning the dark docks and the fence topped with barbed wire.

 _Let’s go see what the shipments look like,_ Eddie encourages.

Venom’s shivering again but keeps moving.

 _We can leave as soon as we check out the containers, V,_ Eddie reassures. Venom vaults over the fence, landing with surprising care on the other side of the chain link fence. _If no one’s here we’ll go get sushi._

“Good,” Venom murmurs— and they get to work.

The dock is empty— no workers, no watchmen, and the emptiness is starting to make the pit of anxiety in Eddie’s gut grow. He can tell Venom’s aware of it too, they’re skirting around the edges of the fence, not going any closer to the center.

There’s movement— along the edge of their vision, small and quick but human—

“Eddie,” Venom’s anxiety mounts to panic and Eddie feels them stumble without really seeing what Venom’s seen, “it’s a trap—”

And then noise pierces through their skull, echoing loud enough to shatter and—

Venom is _shrieking_ , terrified and unrestrained and Eddie wants to reach out— to comfort him, tell him he’s still _there_ , they’re going to be okay— but, silence. It’s all encompassing, echoing and horrifying; but there’s still screaming— and Eddie doesn’t realize, until he sees Venom, unprotected, someone with a sound gun pointed straight at him, shivering in the cold bay air on the pavement, that it’s him.

 _Eddie’s_ screaming.

“Don’t— Don’t hurt him,” and his voice is weak, raw and ragged with that same hysteric begging pitch to it. “Please—”

“Mr. Brock,” another man steps out from one of the shipping containers, baton in hand, followed by a group of scientists— how were they hiding—, and sickly sweet smile fixed on his pale face. Eddie recognizes him once his eyes finally focus on him— he’s one of Bennett’s bodyguards, some hulking guy with a surprisingly clear rap sheet. “We wouldn’t _dream_ of hurting it— such a powerful investment. It’s the future— the rebuilding of the Life Foundation. But, you.”

Venom quivers, reaching towards Eddie but forced back by another piercing blast of sound. “You’re hurting him— please—”

“You’re a problem, Mr. Brock. In more ways than one; it,” and the man jerks his thumb towards where his employees are herding Venom into a plexiglas box— hazmat suits and sound prods shepherding him. Bennett’s man starts to drag him, to the edge of the pavement, where the water from the bay pulses slowly. “We know it will keep looking for you. We need to insure we can keep a handle on it.”

“No— he needs me—”

“You’ve truly been nothing but a thorn in the Life Foundation’s side,” and the grip on his hood tightens, and Bennett’s guard smiles at him, his nicotine stained teeth are going to be the last thing he sees, “have a nice life, Mr. Brock.” And he’s pushed in.

Eddie can’t move, he’s frozen— the water’s cold and he’s alone, _again_ —, the image of Venom sealed in a plexiglas box burned in his mind and it’s worse than watching Venom burn up. Knowing Venom’s going to be tortured, experimented on, and Eddie’s only human, he’s going to drown— and he never told Venom—

There’s a piercing shriek— different, than the frequency the employees have been using on them— and there’s claws wrapped around his hoodie, and before he has a chance to think who’s screaming, he’s hauled out of the cold water into the colder air.

And there’s a spine in the bodyguard’s throat, two through his chest dripping blood. He lets out a guttural rattle.

Eddie blinks the water from his eyes and is dropped to the ground— the air rushes out of him but the pain feels disconnected, like he’s not quite there in his own body.

There’s screaming— different than Eddie’s desperate shrieking, more like a war cry— and the scent of blood is sudden and heavy in the cold air, like out of a nightmare. There’s a figure in front of him that’s almost human but wrong— stretched out thin beyond what a human could be with jagged edges and four arms, clawed fingers dripping with blood.

Eddie stares, freezing and trying to catch his breath, and thinks, _a symbiote,_ a bit dizzy with the thought, and tracks its movements, terrified it might run its talons through _him_. The light glints off of the creature’s slick, metallic blue skin and with a high, quiet hiss it moves, jumps forward with arms outstretched, and skewers the scientists attempting to drag Venom away.

The plexiglas box falls with a sharp thud, muted by the other symbiote’s screeching, and Eddie feels his stomach lurch— he tries to get his feet under him, legs moving slow and sluggish, and stumbles— hits his chin on the pavement— but keeps moving, clawing his aching hands forward and dragging himself closer.

The other symbiote keeps up its rampage— spearing the hired muscle with spikes that appear from its spine, and Eddie thinks, wildly, that if it weren’t for everything he’s been through with Venom he’d be paralyzed with fear.

But all he can focus on is the plexiglass box, Venom beating wildly against the clear walls, and Eddie swears he can hear Venom calling to him— but he can’t move, he’s reeling from the quiet echoing in his mind and how much it _hurt_ to have Venom ripped from his body— and the bay goes silent, thick with the scent of blood and death.

The symbiote turns then— and Eddie shudders when it locks eyes with him; it has the same opalescent eyes as Venom but they’re narrower, meaner, almost, and curve back further. It moves slow, curls thin, curved talons around the box Venom’s in and—

“Please don’t hurt him,” his voice is weaker than before, wrung out and almost quiet enough to be drowned out by the distant traffic. “I can’t lose him.”

The symbiote tears one of the walls off of Venom’s box, reaches forward and grabs him between sharp talons, and holds him up to its face. “No—” He can just imagine the symbiote opening its jaws, swallowing Venom whole while Eddie’s powerless to stop it.

“Venom,” it hisses, “the little instigator,” its tongue lolls out of a mouth that nearly splits its face in half. Its voice is like a sharp strike to the back of his skull, swallowing glass, and nails on chalkboard all at once.

Eddie flinches back a little, but manages to get his feet under him. He sways, but he keeps his eyes on Venom, shivering weakly in the symbiote’s grip. Its nearly twice his size— all gangly, dangerous limbs and sharp edges. It turns and Eddie can see spines trailing down its neck and spine.

“We knew you were here— but we didn’t expect you and your,” it grins, face splitting and tongue extending, like a threat and like it’s laughing all at once, “ _partner_ to be stupid enough to walk blind into a trap. How disappointing.”

“Are. You gonna eat us.”

“Oh, why would we do _that_ ,” it narrows its eyes further and steps forward, the motion fluid and jerky all at once. Eddie stops himself from stepping back, keeps his eyes on Venom. “You are very small in the scheme of things— besides. We have a measure of fondness for you and your other— disaster that he may be.”

The symbiote folds its bottom set of arms over its midsection and extends the hand holding Venom. “Take him, before your recklessness rubs off on us.”

Eddie reaches forward, shivering, and feels relief wash through him at the warmth that sweeps through him when Venom reaches for him, touches his ring finger before launching at his chest, sinking through cloth and skin to settle heavy around Eddie’s heart.

 _Eddie,_ he sounds wrecked, and the feeling of relief nearly knocks Eddie off his feet.

“Oh thank _god_ ,” Eddie whispers, puts his hand on his chest, and staggers.

The other symbiote steadies him with a careful hand— and it dawns on him as Venom settles back, starts mending flesh and burning away the threat of hypothermia— and the name punches out of him like a fist to his chest, “ _Skirth?_ ”

“At least one of you is smart,” the symbiote says with that alarming grin again, their eyes closing with apparent mirth and the steel blue of the symbiote parts, reveals Dora’s face first before unwinding, slowly lowering Dora— who’s wearing a sports bra and leggings, like she was just going to the gym before making a pitstop to murder Life Foundation scientists— to the ground before sinking back into Dora’s skin. The only trace of the symbiote is a tendril sprawled over Dora’s shoulder, its small face staring at Eddie.

“I went to your _funeral_ ,” he says, dazedly.

Dora titters a little and her symbiote laughs again, showing rows of teeth. Eddie flinches. He can feel Venom rising to the surface of his skin— seemingly content with the repairs, but burning with hunger now. “You— I. _What._ ”

“We achieved symbiosis,” Dora says a little breathlessly.

Eddie blinks. “I can see that Doc—”

“Please,” Eddie’s eyes track a trail of steel blue wrapping along Dora’s bare shoulder, “call me Dora.”

“Okay, okay, Dora— just—” breathe, Eddie, Venom offers helpfully. Eddie pauses. Closes his eyes and refocuses on Dora’s earnest face. “ _How_ is this happening?”

“Well— I mean. Blue and I ended up a match—”

“A very, _good_ match,” the symbiote hisses, they close their eyes and grin wide showing off teeth sharper and longer than Eddie’s seen and Eddie can’t quite suppress his urge to lean back.

Venom stays quiet.

Dora flushes and reaches up, smashing Blue’s tiny head down against her shoulder. “Enough of that,” she mumbles. The symbiote screeches and the sound makes Eddie’s hair stand on edge and Venom draws tightly back into Eddie’s body, shivering. “Oh— Sorry, sorry,” Dora raises her hands in plaintive apology. “We’ve been— well. You see we wanted to try to scare the Life Foundation while we were looking into them and the screaming _really_ unnerves people—”

“Did you send me the emails,” Eddie asks wildly.

“No,” Blue says flatly, “that was an accident. The Life Foundation thought you were looking into them, even though it was _us_.” Blue grins, extends their face and bares their teeth in an approximation of a grin— and Venom materializes, his form is still shaky, but he swaths himself over Eddie’s chest and snarls— “You were never meant to be here,” Blue says simply and snaps at Venom like they’re going to take a chunk out of him. “You worked well as bait though, as usual, Venom—”

“ _Hey_ — don’t talk to him like that—”

“ _Blue_.” Dora frowns and Blue retreats back to her.

They flash another toothy grin that Eddie can’t help but shudder at and Blue turns to Dora and purrs, sidles under her chin and coos, “Apologies, Dora, I won’t cause any trouble.”

“They aren’t wrong though,” Dora says after a moment’s consideration. “Why— what were you doing here Eddie? Couldn’t you _tell_ it was a trap?”

Eddie looks away. “Yeah, but. We figured _we_ could handle it, y’know.”

Dora sighs. “Bennett has all the research we did on the symbiotes previously— and more. The Life Foundation wants to start over with a single symbiote— they think they can force them to reproduce— and. Well. Once they have symbiotes again,” Dora makes a vague gesture. “Blue and I have been trying to stop it— to dismantle the Life Foundation’s infrastructure since they think everyone who worked with Drake is dead or. On their side.”

Dora looks over at the scientists bodies, dotted with bloody chasms where Blue’s spines ripped through them. Her expression is distant, unreadable but for the determined set of her jaw. Blue rubs against her cheek and Dora softens, minutely.

Eddie winces. “So. I just happened to step into the middle of your heroics.”

Dora smiles kindly. “Essentially— I. I really do appreciate that you drew them out into the open. Please believe me that I didn’t want either of you to get hurt, Eddie.”

“It’s,” he thinks about Riot’s spear piercing his heart, the pain when Venom had forced his heart to beat, his blood to pump, and his lungs to breathe, “don’t worry about it Dora. Really.” Venom curls around Eddie’s heart, quiet, but aching, “We’ve been through worse.”

“That doesn’t make this pleasant,” Dora says softly, she raises her hand, palm cupped around one of Blue’s curling tendrils. “We got separated during one of our hits— it. The pain is indescribable, isn’t it?”

Eddie nods and feels Venom echo the confirmation back at him— the feeling of hopelessness, the fear at the prospect of seeing Eddie die, of not being able to do anything about it.

“Yeah,” Eddie puts a hand over his chest, relieved when Venom manifests to curl over the back of his palm, “it is.”

“Your symbiote is weak,” Blue cuts in, they fix unblinking eyes on Eddie.

Eddie winces. “Yeah. I. We got separated for a while. We both didn’t do too hot.”

“If Venom had consumed his previous hosts he wouldn’t need so long to recover,” Blue’s voice is accusatory, “or if you had looked after him— given him what he needs— if you had been a _better_ host—”

“ _Shut up_ ,” Venom springs from Eddie’s chest snarling. “You know _nothing_ — you have never cared about your hosts.”

Blue tilts their head, eyes narrowing but never closing, and laughs— their voice shrill and echoing like their scream. Eddie shivers and Venom wavers, but stays stubbornly posed over Eddie’s heart.

“I suppose you have a point,” Blue purrs, “before Dora there was no point to… indulging in hosts.” Dora twitches and bats at Blue in a good-natured way that makes Eddie think the two have had this conversation before. “We’re stranded here now, though. There is no reason to not… enjoy and become a hedonist like you.” Blue curls around Dora’s throat, humming, and laughs again. “You should be happy, Venom, a fellow klyntar has finally come to understand your backwards thinking— all it took was life or death.”

Embarrassment rolls through Venom— shame— and Eddie reaches up, automatically, to put a hand on Venom’s skin. He ripples, leans into the touch, and Blue laughs again.

“Okay,” Dora says firmly, “that’s enough— you guys should leave. I’m sure the cops will be here within the hour— and.” Dora pauses, “If you and Venom need to feed— we. We already… fed. In a sense.”

Blue purrs. “I enjoyed Dora before—”

“ _Blue_ ,” Dora bats at them again. “We’re going to be here a while longer— we need to destroy the equipment they had, see if they had any research on hand. So— you’re safe here. For now. Until the cops come.”

Eddie blinks. “Uh. Thanks, then. I guess.”

Dora smiles, warm, “It was good to see you, Eddie— try to stay out of trouble.”

And, before he can respond, Blue is covering Dora in a sheen of blue— and they stand there, ten feet tall and horrific, and smile. “Be safe on your way home, boys,” Blue purrs and they move— in that awful jerky but smooth way they do— and crash into the storage container, talons ripping into metal like it’s cloth.

“I don’t like them,” Venom sulks, and Eddie collapses, legs folding under him so quickly that Venom pulses with alarm, and _laughs_.

Venom eats after that— takes over their body once Eddie can get his feet under him again and he can tell Venon shakily, softly, “I’m okay, it’s okay.” They eat and Eddie can feel the strength returning to Venom with each body— and Eddie feels guilty— how could he have not been able to pick up on how weak Venom felt. The difference after feeding— gorging— is palpable, leaves Eddie feeling sated and full and leaves Venom feeling bigger, like he can get them home without help.

“Eddie,” Venom says softly, one eye fixed warily on where Blue is still shredding through equipment with alarming glee, “it’s okay—”

 _Is it really, V,_ Eddie asks, near hysterical. _It’s been a_ year _— you could have been better by now if I just—_

“Eddie. You took care of us,” Venom’s never sounded so patient. “ _I_ would have died without you, Eddie.”

Eddie reels. _I,_ he thinks dazedly.

“Eddie?”

 _Okay,_ he still feels dazed. _V._

“Yes, Eddie?”

Blue shreds another container and Eddie shudders at the gleeful trill they make. Sirens sound in the distance.

_Let’s go home, V._

 

* * *

 

The cat is stretched out on the little bed Venom picked out for the balcony when they get back to Eddie’s apartment. It blinks slowly at them, not even flinching at the appearance of Venom and meows. Venom recedes, slowly, ceding control back to Eddie and extends a tendril to the cat, patting its head gently.

“Hey.”

Venom hums, attention momentarily diverted from the purring cat.

“What did Blue mean when she said you had backwards thinking?”

Venom stills. _We,_ he withdraws from the cat, and Eddie sits, huddles close to the window and watches as the cat gets up, draws closer to them— seemingly in a good mood since it rubs against his ankles. _I have. Differed from our kind for some time._

“What does that mean?”

 _I,_ and Venom pauses, slowly forms a small head he can curl over Eddie’s shoulder, “I have never agreed with the others about our nature— I believed. We could live with our hosts. They wanted to conquer— consume.”

“You were ready to eat me when we first met.”

Venom grunts, embarrassed. “Yes. Well. You made a… compelling case. You were. Different, Eddie. Special.”

Memories shift along Venom’s thoughts— too quick for specifics, but enough for Eddie to get impressions— warmth, safety, a fondness so profound and new that it nearly left him breathless. And, then, clearly, he sees himself holding his hand out to Venom— multiple times, yet every time the same. Welcoming, accepting, happy— _home_.

The cat meows, puts a paw on Eddie’s leg and presses claws in.

“He’s hungry.”

“The… cat?” Eddie asks unsurely.

“Yes, Eddie, the cat.”

“Okay let’s— we’ll go get him more food— didn’t we _just_ feed him.”

Venom rumbles fondly. “He has much in common with us.”

“V, the cat eats better than the both of us— he has two types of food and three kinds of treats.”

“He is an important creature,” Venom says softly as Eddie pushes open the window they left from, “he brought me back to you.”

Eddie slips.

 

* * *

 

It, strangely enough, feels like a normal evening once they’re back in the apartment. They feed the cat— inside, which is a surprising success—, put a tray of tater tots to bake, and Eddie’s half in the freezer, trying to find the solitary bag of chicken nuggets he knows is in there when he feels Venom touch, gentle, between his shoulders.

“Yeah?”

Venom doesn’t say anything— just touches. Eddie’s too aware of his breathing, the slow thud of his heart, and can feel Venom’s relief settling heavy in his bones. Eddie, and it sounds like the word’s drug from the depths of Venom’s being, like Venom can’t believe he’s still _here_.

He can feel Venom forming— torso, shoulders, arms, again, and he’s melts into Venom’s touch when he wraps his arms around him and squeezes. “We’re okay,” Eddie says softly. The toaster oven clicks before it dings and Eddie steps back, closes the freezer door.

“Bet you’re not that hungry, huh?”

Venom stays quiet, clings to Eddie with so much force that he’s sure his lungs will pop. _Won’t let that happen,_ Venom murmurs; and the night goes on like that for a while, with Venom clinging to his back as he eats tater tots and the last of the sweet and sour pork he ordered the night before, turns the television on to be dull static noise, and ends up watching as the cat warily explores the area around its bed.

Around midnight, the rain rolls back in and an email pings on Eddie’s phone. It’s from another dummy account— but, he opens it. The subject— _Parasite Troubles? Try This!_ — a little too coincidental. Venom peers over his shoulder.

 _Helped me and my partner,_ the email says, _We’ll keep in touch :) - D & B._

Eddie snorts, sets the pdf— named “Phenethylamine for Dummies,”— and tells Venom, “I feel like your friend named these.

“Friend is being generous.”

“Well, whatever it is— I’m sure it’s. Something. Dora’s smart. Probably knows… a lot we don’t.”

Venom grunts, a concession in his own right. “The klyntar the doctor bonded with was a scientist. Never liked them.”

Eddie laughs. “You don’t like a lot of people, bud.”

“I like you, Eddie.”

Venom tightens his grip around Eddie’s chest, and Eddie inhales, sharply. “Yeah, I know, big guy.” And Eddie gets to his feet, turns the television off, and walks to his room. He’s waiting— feels like Venom has to be the one to take this next step. Whatever that is. They stay quiet as Eddie strips out of his wet clothes— even when he showers, the water lukewarm at best, and only stirs once Eddie’s pulled on boxers and an old NASA print shirt he doesn’t even remember buying.

_Eddie._

“Yeah?”

Without moving from where he’s pressed against Eddie’s back, Venom forms a head, extending from the center of Eddie’s chest. “You said we would talk,” Venom says seriously and Eddie hums.

“I did.”

Venom stays quiet— stares at Eddie intently. “Are we allowed to kiss, Eddie.”

Eddie smiles. “That’s not talking, V.”

“This is important, too,” Venom says, softer than he expects, “We. You almost died, Eddie.”

Eddie smiles, reaches out to touch, fingers automatically drawn to the points of Venom’s teeth. “Yeah, c’mere.”

Venom pushes forward slowly, almost unsure, and Eddie meets him— halfway, maybe more than that— and the dam breaks. He can feel Venom’s desperation the second his eyes close.

They’d both been so close to be separating in a way they didn’t know how to overcome— and, Venom consumes him. He kisses desperate and sloppy, like Venom doesn’t know how to articulate the relief knotting in their chest. And hands press against his hips, tentacles wrap around his wrists, his forearms, like Venom’s anchoring him— keeping him from being taken again. The arms around his chest squeeze tighter.

And just as soon as it starts, Venom pulls away, reeling, a dual sensation of overstimulation and a want for _more_ —

“Are you sure about this,” Eddie asks breathlessly, pupils blown wide and hands shaking from not only the blind want he feels but the fear— the inexplicable fear that this isn’t really what Venom wants from him, that he’s led the symbiote here somehow. But, Venom laughs, low and fond and as sure of himself as that first night that he laid claim on Eddie, with so much force in his voice as his tongue curled around the word “mine,” and changed Eddie’s life forever.

“We are as sure of this as any other miraculous phenomena in your world, Eddie.”

And something brittle in Eddie breaks, caves in on itself and he laughs, wild and disbelieving. “How is this _miraculous_ — we. _You_ get _nothing_ from me. I couldn’t even help you tonight— Blue had to—”

“You give us _everything_ Eddie,” Venom hisses, a low ebbing anger edging into his voice, “you saved us. You took care of us when we were too weak to offer you power, healing— yet you kept us. You offered kindness, warmth— _home_.” Eddie’s breath catches and Venom goes quiet, contemplative. He touches the hollow of Eddie’s wrist. “Do you question the delicate workings of your universe,” Venom asks softly, voice low and full of promise. He drapes heavy tentacles around Eddie’s shoulders, curls around Eddie’s wrists, presses his teeth to his pulse in a gentle promise. Everything about him should feel like a threat, but Eddie can feel devotion, trust, _softness_ —

“We were made to find each other Eddie. There was never a chance we would not meet and become we.”

Venom says it with such faith— such blind, devoted faith that Eddie feels raw.

“We have learned—” Venom murmurs, voice so low Eddie shivers. “—there is no other to be _we_ with, Eddie. There is no shadow of doubt— only you are allowed to have our everything. You are mine,” and Venom pauses, like he’s taking in a breath, and manifests— as shoulders, a head, arms that wrap around Eddie and hold him close enough that Eddie swears that any second he’ll be Venom again, that they’ll be one—

“ _I_ am also yours.”

Eddie gasps—

Venom loves him.

“Oh,” he breathes and tangles his fingers with Venom’s— revels in the feel of touching and being touched— “how did you hide this—”

“I did not,” Venom rumbles.

And he supposes that's true— the tantrums about the fake boyfriend, the quiet nights in when Eddie fell asleep on the couch and would wake up in bed with Venom curled around his shoulders, wrapped around the pulse in his wrist. The softness and earnestness to learn—

“God, I’m an idiot.”

Venom hums, nuzzles at the back of his neck, the imprint of his teeth sending a shiver down Eddie’s spine. “Yes— but _my_ idiot.”

Eddie trembles— he’s flushed, warm from where Venom’s pressed against his back and he’s getting that heat drunk feeling again. Venom’s overwhelmed, shivering against Eddie’s skin and touching Eddie everywhere— wrapping half-formed tentacles along his arms, gripping his chest, curling along his neck, lingering heavy along Eddie’s palms. “V— s’okay,” he can feel his cock pressing heavy against his boxers— neither of them move to touch it.

Venom’s presence is dizzying, filling his every sense, and Eddie loves it— he’s sure he’s dreamed of this, being held down and taken apart in every sense of the word— but he can feel mounting anxiety alongside every rush of pleasure.

“We don’t gotta tonight, V,” Eddie slurs. He’s sure the hitch in his breath undermines his words in a lot of ways, but he pushes through the fog in his mind— half his, half Venom’s and, god, that’s intoxicating in a way he hadn’t considered before— and reaches out, touches the mass of tendrils curled lightly around his throat, petting his jaw. He strokes, gently, soothing, and hums.

 _You are aroused, Eddie,_ Venom still sounds out of it, just as slurred as Eddie, but the anxiety is mounting— confusion mixed in with it. _Humans— they relieve that tension when it comes._

“Not if we’re not both into it— and—”

 _We are “into it,”_ Venom snaps petulantly. _We are aroused like you are aroused—_

“V,” he cups his palm against Venom’s shivering tendril curled over his chest and Venom melts, loses grip of the tentacles still pressed against Eddie’s body and reforms against Eddie’s palm. He curls along Eddie’s fingers, presses heavy against Eddie’s calming pulse.

“I can wait— we gotta. I think we have to talk a little more,” he strokes his fingers along Venom’s skin, marveling at the way Venom both gives beneath his fingers and leans into the touch, and he draws attention to the knot of anxiety heavy in their gut— the way the distress has already caused the heat in his body to go muted, for his dick to start going soft.

Venom feels a stab of guilt and Eddie moves to soothe it, sends warmth, sleepy contentedness along their bond, and strokes his thumb along Venom’s head.

“S’okay, V, just don’t think we’re really ready yet—”

 _We—_ I _know about sex,_ Venom grumbles, _and masturbation._

Eddie hums, fond and sleepy. “Yeah, I know. One thing to know about it and another thing to be ready for it, love.”

Venom shivers, melts partway into Eddie’s skin— and Eddie can feel him rifling through memories, too quickly for him to grasp what the symbiote’s looking at. “Finding anything interesting in there?” he’s already half asleep.

 _Yes,_ Venom drawls and then reforms along Eddie’s chest, radiating calm and understanding. Big eyes blink up at him and Eddie smiles, thinks, _c’mere,_ and Venom slides up, rubs his face along Eddie’s jaw. _Later then?_

“We’ll talk about it,” he kisses the edge of Venom’s mouth, and Venom twitches. “V?”

 _Sleep, Eddie,_ Venom rumbles softly, all languid contentment and overwhelming affection.

“I love you.”

Venom shudders, wraps tighter around Eddie’s hand and nuzzles against his cheek— Eddie’s slipping into sleep as Venom purrs back, _Only you, Eddie— always you._

 

* * *

 

Eddie expects to wake up feeling feverish— drunk off of the knowledge that Venom’s in love with him— but it feels like a normal Sunday, except that it’s Monday and he needs to call in to work and he’s half-hard. Venom’s quiet, content and sleepy after eating the scientists that Blue had killed, and Eddie lays there, listening to the slow thud of his own heart. Eddie stretches, slow, luxuriating in the fact that despite getting thrown around across the concrete last night he’s not sore.

“Thanks, V,” he says, voice a little sleep slurred and rough, and Venom pulses with heat.

 _Anything for you,_ Eddie.

They lay in bed a little while longer— call in to the office and, with Venom’s help, sound adequately pathetic enough that Eddie’s boss thinks he’s contagious— and let the warmth and familiarity of the bed and the room comfort them. The weight of being separated, which had been a knot of nervous energy last night, has turned into a leaden weight in the morning light. Venom curls tighter around Eddie, manifesting a head and clawed hands to hold tightly at his sides.

“We’re okay,” Eddie whispers. Venoms hands tighten, and the pinprick of claws sends a shiver of _want_ down Eddie’s spine.

“I thought,” Venom says slowly, teeth pressed against Eddie’s ear, tongue curling along the back of his neck, “you were going to die, Eddie.”

Eddie puts his hands on the back of Venom’s, curls his fingers tightly and lets Venom show him— the agony of being ripped away from his host— his love—, the pain from the sound guns, the isolating loneliness of the plexiglas box, the panic and fear of watching Eddie pushed into the water.

And there’s also the shuddering relief of going back to Eddie, of merging back into his skin and bringing warmth back to his skin, the contentedness that came with caring for Eddie— burning the chill away and easing aches, the scrapes from the pavement on Eddie’s chin. There’s an almost intoxicating feeling to being needed and Eddie feels heat drunk on the sudden memory of Venom pushing his tongue into Eddie’s mouth, of feeling both Venom’s arousal and Eddie’s— the feedback loop they had avoided for so long— and the contentedness of falling asleep even though the edge of arousal was still there.

The warmth and feeling of rightness when Eddie whispered _love_ into the dark only loud enough for Venom to hear.

“ _Fuck._ ”

Eddie’s hyper aware of his dick— of the skin Venom’s touching, the tips of Venom’s claws scratching lightly at his sides. “We— y’know. You don’t seem as nervous as you were last night.”

“You were asleep a long time, Eddie,” Venom rumbles and that— Eddie shivers.

“So, were you just looking at my greatest hits while I was asleep?”

“No,” Venom says softly, something dark and possessive in his voice, “I did not want to see you— experiencing something that. Consuming with others.”

Eddie jerks, hisses at how that ignites something liquid and hot in his chest. “Well— what did. You were really freaked out last night.”

“I am becoming accustomed to this sort of hunger; I was not before— but I like it— the concept,” he can sense Venom looking at the outline of his cock, almost fully hard without being touched, and Eddie twitches a little. “Perhaps,” and there’s something sly in Venom’s voice, “you can show me more on how to satiate this— dumb it down for me, Eddie.”

Eddie groans. His hips twitch. “Well, first, don’t— don’t insult the person you’re trying to seduce, V— and. Is this really okay— is this what you want.” There’s the flash of anxiety again and, like before, Eddie becomes too aware of his own skin. “V— babe. We really don’t have to if you’re not ready.”

Venom trembles, the hands on Eddie’s hips waver before sinking back into his skin and it’s like a splash of cold water. Eddie reaches up, strokes a hand over his sternum and waits while Venom shifts around his body, considering.

 _Humans do this all the time,_ Venom says bitterly, _without anxiety— without thought. There is no reason for us to be different._

“I mean— no. Not really, humans get anxiety about this all the time— which is. Why we. Y’know, talk and— we’re kind of a special circumstance, V, we— it’s easy to get wrapped up in the moment.” Eddie shifts, gets his feet on the floor to stabilize himself, focuses on the chill of the faux wood floor and the rumbling in his gut. “I mean— are you even really. Into it?” He can’t help the guilty nausea that swamps him. “Or are you. Do you just want this because I’m pent up? It’s— I can make this a me thing if we need to— I mean. It is a me thing right now so—”

 _No,_ panic seems to set in with the bitterness. Venom wraps around Eddie’s shoulders as he moves to the kitchen. The cat’s in the apartment, finally curled up in the inside bed, and tracking Eddie’s movements. It’s still raining outside. _We— I want this—_ you _._

Eddie pauses. “Maybe we should go slow— date first?”

Venom’s wry amusement is palpable. _We have been doing things that count as “dates,” Eddie._

Cooking dinner together, sharing chocolate and watching Netflix, and late breakfasts swim at the front of his mind. Eddie inhales.

“I just. We didn’t really. Think of ourselves as a couple during that time?”

 _I… did,_ Venom says softly, with so much apprehension that Eddie feels like the world’s biggest ass.

“Okay. I. This is what I mean— I’m. I’m playing catch up here, V. I didn’t. I didn’t think you felt this way.”

_Eddie, I’m sorry._

“V— it’s. It’s really okay, you don’t have to apologize, but we can’t keep assuming we’re on the same page— can you. V, let me see you.”

Venom manifests slowly, a torso and shoulders, arms that reach out and grip Eddie’s sides, gently, and looks at Eddie, eyes fixed intently on Eddie’s face.

“Hey,” Eddie can’t help the grin that spreads, the rush of fondness. He reaches out, curls his hands along Venom’s jaw, admires the simultaneous give and solidity of symbiote skin. “Weren’t you the one who told us we gotta communicate better.”

Venom growls, huffs out a heavy breath and Eddie can feel the urge to go back and hide beneath Eddie’s skin.

“Sorry, sorry, V, I’m teasing.”

“You’re being a bit of a dick, Eddie.”

Eddie laughs. “Yeah, I know— which. Even better reason for us to talk. I’m kind of a dishonest asshole, you know that.”

And that’s what it comes down to— even with someone in his head, who can get the impressions and glimpses of his thought, he still can’t be honest to save his own life. He still can’t communicate. “I really am sorry, V,” Eddie says softly. He pulls Venom a little closer, feels the dual sensation of bringing the symbiote closer and being pulled. “I. Listen. I really didn’t think you’d—” _that’s an excuse,_ says a voice that sounds like the combined force of Eddie’s conscience and Venom’s voice. “I. I dunno. I didn’t wanna fuck up I guess. I mean if we weren’t y’know a thing it’d hurt less if you…”

“We wouldn’t,” Venom growls. “I would _never_.”

Eddie swallows around the knee-jerk reaction to tell Venom why he could do better— that maybe he really should try to see how things with another host— But. He can feel Venom’s hands slide down to his hips— nails pin pricking under his clothes and the warmth of palms over his clothes— and the, _no,_ Venom thinks so loud Eddie’s bones feel like they’re rattling isn’t just Venom’s.He doesn’t want Venom to find another host— the very thought of Venom leaving— The memory of last night— Venom being torn from him, sheared away like their bond meant nothing, leaving only aching loneliness and silence.

“You are the only being I have met who understands that—” Venom thinks about that bone deep ache of having no one, having cold, unnatural silence in the spaces that could be warm, “— _We_ would never give that up, Eddie.”

“Yeah,” Eddie says softly, “we wouldn’t.”

Venom fidgets. Anticipation sits heavy on Eddie’s tongue and the weight of Venom’s hands feels immense in the quiet. The sun peeks out from behind the clouds and a small sliver of sunlight catches along Venom’s face, glints off his unblinking eyes and Eddie feels so immensely fond and in love that it catches in his throat. Venom purrs, low and fond and hungry. Eddie swallows and Venom’s eyes narrow, track the movement of his adam’s apple.

“What does that make us, Eddie?”

 _Everything,_ he thinks. He strokes the pad of his thumb along the bottom of Venom’s teeth.

“Married, probably,” he says, half joke and half hesitantly sincere.

Venom makes a soft, confused noise— even though Eddie _knows_ Venom’s familiar with the concept. Eddie offers up memories of wedding planning, carrying around the ring he’d picked out for Anne for weeks before finding the right time, of a soft, well-worn memory of being asleep and so wrapped up in Anne he didn’t know who was who when he woke, being drunk in college and proposing to his roommate for the sake of financial aid, and. He thinks about _them_ — fused as one, sleeping on the couch, trying their hand at cooking, fighting over the last Reese’s while watching late night television.

“Eddie, neither of us have proposed yet.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s true— so,” and his stomach flips, even though he already knows Venom’s basically agreed to have and hold him til death do they part, “dating, maybe?”

Venom rumbles, presses his face close and nuzzles Eddie’s cheek. “We would like that,” he purrs into Eddie’s ear and his knees feel weak— his pulse jumps, and he can feel a low curl of satisfaction from Venom.

“Good— are we— breakfast or?”

Venom hums, soft, and Eddie shivers when he feels Venom’s tongue lave up the side of his neck. “Yes.” And he feels the soft prick of teeth against his skin and Venom’s hands tighten, possessive, eager.

Eddie doesn’t think he’s popped a boner this fast in decades.

“That— you gonna eat me?”

Venom laughs, drags his teeth slowly up the skin of Eddie’s neck and pauses at his jaw. Eddie looks down, meets Venom’s large blinking eyes and can see the tell tale promise of Venom’s smile.

“In a sense,” Venom murmurs, voice thick with promise.

Eddie shivers. Venom’s breath is hot against his ear, and his tongue is as hot against the side of his neck and where it slides to his nape. He can feel teeth. Eddie breathes out, ragged, and closes his eyes— to see himself, flushed and already sweating.

 _God,_ he thinks faintly, _that’s gross._

“I like this about you too.”

“ _Gross._ ”

He swallows, his tongue feels too big for his mouth. He licks his lips, and Venom’s drawn to the motion.

“Tell me what you like, Eddie.”

“Fuck,” the breath escapes Eddie in a rush and he can feel how much Venom enjoys that— knowing that he’s making Eddie’s pulse rush and his breath shorten. “I mean— there’s. Y’know there’s a lot of stuff I like, babe, wanna. Wanna elaborate a bit?”

“No,” Venom’s amusement is palpable— would be even if they didn’t share thoughts. “We want. Everything— we’ve wanted for so long, you and I, both, Eddie,” he’s never noticed before that Venom’s never stopped saying his name like it’s the only thing that matters. He likes how it sounds in the air like that, Venom’s voice rumbling soft and fond and a little alien. He tightens his grip on Venom’s jaw, rubs under Venom’s chin and smiles hazily at the way Venom shudders.

“Can we go somewhere the cat won’t see us.”

“Why.”

The cat peeks over the edge of its bed, blinks slowly, and Eddie ignores the way Venom slides his tongue just under his sleeping shirt to push the memory of almost squishing Mr. Belvedere back when he and Anne were just starting to date. He emphasises the unpleasantness of cat scratches on his ass and Venom snickers.

“The cat is nowhere near us,” Venom palms at Eddie’s ass, amused, claws pin-pricking against against his skin, but Eddie can feel his legs moving, steering towards the bedroom. “But we understand the… desire to avoid. An audience.”

Eddie thinks— it’s lucky Venom’s decided to take them back to the room, short walk that it is, because he’s too aware of how Venom feels on his skin. He can feel the weight of Venom’s tongue, still wrapped around his neck, of the claws under his boxers, and of the other grasping, moving tendrils that are slowly reaching out, touching everywhere. There’s a tendril along his throat, wrapped tightly around his hip, one pressed along the seam of his leg that’s just barely not in the place he wants it, and— there’s a tendril pressed just over his heart, half above skin half below.

He can tell how Venom’s listening— feeling the rapid pulse, counting the beats, listening to the rush of blood. It’s strange, comforting in a way he’d never considered. Venom had held him last night— used the strength of just feeding to manifest arms to hold Eddie close and kiss him like they were both about to die. You almost did, Venom rumbles. The thought seems brittle— like he doesn’t want to say the words with his mouth.

“I’m right here, love,” Eddie strokes up his chest, wishes he’d had the foresight to sleep shirtless, and keeps his hand over his heart, squeezes around the tendril curled there. He’s not really surprised by the rip that comes next. “You know,” he says as he watches half the shirt flutter to the floor, he strokes the tendril again— skin-to-skin this time and Venom shivers, “it’s a good thing I didn’t have an attachment to that shirt.”

“Sorry.”

“You’re not really.”

Venom huffs. “Maybe— wouldn’t have ripped it if you’d liked it.”

Eddie grins. “Yeah, sure, c’mere, gimme a kiss and I’ll maybe forgive you.”

Venom moves slowly, draws his tongue up Eddie’s jaw and presses teeth against his skin to feel Eddie shudder and breathe out a slow, measured breath. He feels Venom’s smile before he pulls away and Eddie bites his lip to keep from whining.

Venom looks at him, face unreadable, but somehow an open book— Eddie can feel the overwhelming fount of affection, the genuine, eager desire to be selfless in this, and that same steady pulse of nervousness, milder than the anxiety from last night. Eddie reaches out, lets Venom’s tongue wrap around his hand and he leans forward, eyes still fixed on Venom’s face, and kisses his tongue— slow, a little unsure.

The wash of pleasure, desire, is almost unexpected in its intensity; Eddie moans and Venom shivers, loses shape, before surging forward.

It’s a lot like the forest— a lot like last night— all desperate, frenzied energy and a wash of _we’re alive, we’re here,_ like the novelty of life and death decisions is new. Venom’s tongue is almost suffocating in his mouth— pushing a little further, tentative though Eddie keeps thinking, wildly, that Venom could shove his tongue all the way down his throat and he wouldn’t mind it.

And, as teenagerish and awkward as it seems, Eddie’s not sure where to put his hands. He’s unsure if he should reach out again, bury his fingers in Venom’s shoulders or his jaw, but Venom makes the decision for him— fills his hands with massless tentacles that slowly form into human-like palms in Eddie’s, fingers locking together in a perfect fit, and he’s washed away by a surge of affection.

He didn’t really think until now that Venom was aware how much he loved touch— though, Venom thinks about absent touches, nuzzling against each other as they fell asleep.

 _How could I not know,_ Venom thinks, fond and loud and rumbling through Eddie’s body as if he said it aloud.

“I guess you know everything, huh,” Eddie teases when Venom pulls back to allow Eddie a long, shivering inhale. Everything feels so new— the flush of blood in his cheeks, the way his cock is hard and slick in his boxers, even the sweat that rolls down his spine feels pinpoint focused. Venom’s skin shivers and, for a moment, the hands in Eddie’s lose shape before Eddie can feel the effort Venom takes to reform— to stay somewhat human. And, beneath everything, the heat and the near blinding desire, he can feel a thrum of nervousness— an anxiety about the unknown that makes Eddie soft and cautious all at once.

Eddie strokes his thumb along one of Venom’s rippling hands.

“V?”

“Yes.”

“Do you wanna slow down— we can just do this,” and he thinks about kissing— for hours, lazy, and warm until they’re both hazy and tired, too boneless to move or care about the time.

Venom stays quiet, eyes shifting to look at their hands.

“I,” Venom rumbles slowly, “I want everything you are willing to give me, Eddie— this—”

And Eddie’s flooded again— the feeling of near overstimulation, the heat, the way his boxers cling to his sweaty skin, the memory of the heavy weight of Venom’s tongue in his mouth. His mouth waters and Venom smiles, purrs, and draws his tongue up the side of Eddie’s neck. He lingers at the heavy thud of Eddie’s pulse and Eddie sighs a shivering moan that he can feel rippling across Venom’s skin.

“ _This_ especially, Eddie.”

“God—”

“That’s not my name, Eddie.”

Eddie laughs— and he can feel the way Venom brightens at the sound, how the anxiety curbs, and affection and love and a softness that Eddie wouldn’t have previously pegged for Venom sweeps over them both. “You’re not as funny as you think,” Eddie murmurs, and Venom leans in close— and all he sees are teeth and wide, white eyes before Venom’s kissing him again.

“Tell me, Eddie,” and he doesn’t know how Venom’s speaking out loud when he has his tongue in Eddie’s mouth, and it reminds him— Venom’s not human. And, god, he’s so into that. Venom’s hands grip tighter, press claws against the back of his palms and there’s weight along his thighs— squirming tendrils that snake around his thigh, the back of his knee, his hip— and Eddie squirms, moans against Venom’s tongue. “How do you like to be touched, Eddie,” he can feel Venom’s voice like it’s pressed against his cock.

 _Hands,_ Eddie thinks dazedly. Venom draws back, tongue slick, and Eddie follows— trying to kiss, and Venom leans forward, nuzzles against his cheek and Eddie supposes that’s enough for now. “Hands,” he repeats, voice shaky and wrecked already— and he can feel that it’s too vague, that Venom needs more, so he thinks about Venom’s clawed hands around his cock, the pad of fingers gently circling the head of his cock, a palm around his balls.

Venom moves slowly, a tendril slowly sliding along the inside of his thigh— over his boxers— and ghosts over the wet patch on the fabric. He feels Venom shiver, the hand in his right hand loses form, sinks back into his skin and resurfaces slow— doesn’t reform into anything vaguely human only curls around him, small tendrils coating his fingers as the other hand struggles to keep form.

He feels Venom tug his boxers down slow— can feel the waistband drag across his sensitive skin and it sends another low roll of heat across their skin. Venom presses a tendril along his pubic bone, a gentle pressure, and he can tell Venom’s concentrating— forming another hand, clawed but gentle— and he rolls his hips up, breathes in ragged— desperate for another touch on his cock besides his own—

And the second Venom’s hand wraps around him, Eddie arches like he’s been touched by a livewire. He moans, overheated and as sensitive as he was when he first jerked off again, and Venom loses form, melts back into his skin with an overwhelmed, choked off whine. And Eddie isn’t sure if he came, if Venom came, if they came but he can feel cum on his stomach and Venom’s reeling.

“V,” he sounds slurred, rough, like he’s been fucking for a night instead of shooting off the second he felt someone else’s hand on his cock, “V— s’okay, it’s. Little pent up.”

Venom doesn’t say anything and— for a moment Eddie feels a pit of anxiety— but then Venom’s mind opens up to him. He can feel his own arousal— alien, but not new— and the the feel of being touched— the flood of heat knowing Eddie was like this because of _Venom_ , that he didn’t want another human, he wanted Venom’s claws and teeth and tongue, the distinct feel of symbiote skin and Venom’s tendrils.

“You’re a sap,” Eddie slurs fondly, and Venom slowly surfaces from his skin again, flows over his forearms and hands— curls clawed fingers against his again— before covering his hands. “Mm? Need a second for round two— didn’t. Really didn’t think I was gonna come that fast, gonna be honest with you.”

_Eddie._

“Mm, yeah?” Venom moves their hands, strokes down the softness of his stomach and Eddie squirms. “Still sensitive, V, not the dick,” and Venom makes a soft noise of assent, understanding, and drags their fingers through the cum on Eddie’s stomach. “Please use your own mouth—” and it’s half a joke, but Venom forms a head along his side, presses his teeth to Eddie’s hip briefly, scrapes slowly along skin to open his mouth and Eddie’s cock twitches. He watches as Venom drags their cum-covered hand close to Venom’s mouth and Eddie swallows, tastes thickness at the back of his tongue, as he watches— feels— Venom’s tongue wrap around their fingers.

“Shit.”

Venom rumbles out a low purr.

“I feel like. I shouldn’t really be surprised by that.”

 _Do you not like it?_ Venom’s voice sounds lower— strained, almost— and Eddie’s aware of the stir of heat in his belly.

“I. I mean I didn’t say _that_ , did I?”

Venom licks his hip, drags his teeth up Eddie’s side before sinking back under his skin and move their hands to Eddie’s thighs— splays their hands flat and rubs their thumbs along the skin of his inner thighs. _How long do you need to catch breath, Eddie,_ Venom asks softly. Eddie can feel him, rolling under his shoulder blades, pressing up just past his skin to pet and caress. Eddie shivers.

“Little longer, baby,” Eddie murmurs, in a low sweet drawl. Venom keens, grips Eddie’s thighs a little tighter and a tendril reaches up, curls around his throat and he feels teeth at the back of his neck.

Venom hums, nuzzles along neck and shoulder blade, before licking another long stripe up Eddie’s neck and another set of teeth press against his hip. “Show us,” Venom rumbles, voice strained with enough desperation that Eddie groans. “Show us how to touch— to tease.”

Eddie breathes in, slow, through his nose and closes his eyes— can see himself behind his eyelids, his still soft cock, the cum on his stomach, Venom’s fingers sprawled out and greedy on his thighs. He feels and sees his cock twitch and Venom rumbles another lazy purr as Eddie moves their hands— slow— up his thighs, his hips, and stomach. He settles with their hands index fingers just below his nipples.

They rub, gently, over his nipple and Venom ripples, briefly melts into Eddie’s arms before reappearing. “Like this.” They drag the claw of their thumb slowly over his nippe and Venom makes a low, thin sound— and the feedback loop of pleasure hits Eddie like a slow wave. His hips jerk, slow, and he sees Venom’s eyes blink up from his hip, focused on how Eddie’s cock stirs. “Like the view?”

“Yes,” Venom hisses against his hip, tongue dragging along against his ass. “This is _good_ — my _perfect_ Eddie.”

Eddie moans, feels their hand spasm and press hard against his chest. The words reverberate through their body, settle heavy in Eddie’s stomach and hit like a truck just beneath his rib cage. “ _V_ ,” he breathes, but Venom’s already there, kissing Eddie breathless like he wants and dragging the heel of his palm along his nipple.

He pulls back— and Eddie sees wide, unblinking eyes and rows of teeth he loves, can still feel on his hip.

 _You can ask for anything, Eddie,_ Venom’s voice is so loud, so low that Eddie swears he forgets to breathe. _I will give us everything we ever wanted._

And Venom shows him— flashes of thoughts, Venom fucking him, with a tendril down his throat; Eddie fucking Venom when he’s nine-feet tall and powerful muscle; slow, lazy mornings— _making_ love, Eddie thinks, and Venom echoes eagerly— where there’s no way to tell where they begin and end. “If you want it, Eddie— _I_ want all of it.”

“I love you,” Eddie blurts, before the words can catch in his throat or he can think too much— say something wrong and ruin the moment; but, he can feel how right this is. He can feel it in the way Venom leans close, presses their foreheads together and breathes Eddie in.

They’ve never been more sure of anything in their lives.

And that makes it so much easier— they move together, hands moving down to Eddie’s half hard cock, and Venom growls, kisses Eddie again, but watches— shows Eddie as they kiss, desperate and sweet, the way their hands look wrapped around their cock. Eddie feels feverish again— skin prickling, overstimulated, but it feels so good— and Venom keens, heart drunk and overwhelmed, even when their control of their hands become clumsy. Eddie drags their hand slow up their cock and thumbs along their cockhead, jerks when Venom squeezes their balls and ghosts a claw along their perineum with a low, possessive thought of, _Later._

_Close, Eddie._

Eddie whines around Venom’s tongue— and thinks, dazedly, that no human could be this close to him, that this— that Venom is who he’s always been waiting for. He feels teeth press along his hip, tendrils snaking up from under his skin, fully forming to touch— everywhere— to drag over his nipples, tease along his ass, and cradle his jaw. Venom touches him like he’s precious— and he wishes he had more hands to reach back, so he could cradle Venom like he deserves and Venom growls, thinks of Eddie’s hands around his weakened form, of Eddie petting, nuzzling— so much bigger than him in his smaller forms and Eddie sighs— feels his orgasm creep up on him like a slow building wave. Venom follows— and it’s like a cataclysm and coming home all at once.

He doesn’t know how long they lay there— wrapped up in each other, Venom half formed and half sinking into his skin, and Eddie with his boxers shoved halfway down his thighs with cum drying on his skin. But something about that seems perfect— even if he’s going to hate clean up.

 _Eddie,_ Venom hums, a little hazy and so full of affection Eddie feels full to bursting. _Eddie, love you._

“I know,” Eddie murmurs. He drags his palm along the tendril draped over his chest— his heart— up to the pulse in his throat. He grins, reaches their hand up to kiss the lazily, half-formed claws on their index and ring finger. “I love you, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so! the last month of college almost murdered me!!!  
> have an almost 11k chapter as apology for the delay in update! and happy belated holidays and new year's!
> 
> as always you can find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/mcscouty_)!  
> (i'm trying not to use tumblr anymore)

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on [twitter](https://twitter.com/mcscouty_) and [tumblr](https://mcscouts.tumblr.com) if you wanna talk I'm still pretty much venom 24/7 and I tend to post abt the progress of my projects on twitter!


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